Home And Not Alone
by TwinSanity
Summary: The story is over, but the Reviewer’s Choice Awards are here! Come watch your (un)favorite characters win awards in a variety of categories as the Talshar twins attempt to keep the insanity and destruction down to a minimum. Minimal bashing. Genre: humor
1. Prologue

**The Story  
  
Rated for some violence, several mentionings of murder, and actiony scenes**  
  
Me: Look! It's me! I'm here! I have written over fifty reviews for many different stories, and now I am finally writing a sotry. Isn't it amazing?!  
  
Toli: Just move on.  
  
Me: Okay. My name is Mena and this is my sister Toli. We're the co-writers of this story.  
  
Toli: That's right. I write the scary parts, and she writes the boring...I mean, unscary parts!  
  
Me: Snacks cost the reading of one chapter! And I just want everybody to know, this isn't the first chapter, it's the prologue. So it's supposed to explain a little and DON'T BLAME ME IF IT DRAGS ON OKAY BECAUSE SHE WROTE IT!  
  
Toli: By the way, we don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! or any of the characters except the villain. Now start reading!!!  
  
**Prologue**  
  
The activity of the city dwindled quite rapidly after the sun went down. Not many people stayed up late to wander the streets. They would go home to their families, or pets, or roomates, or house, and turn in.  
  
An entire street, which was crammed full during the day, was empty except except for one lone figure. The figure was somewhat short, and wrapped up in a black coat and hood. Thin strands of jet-black hair hung out from underneath the hood. A bulging black duffel bag swung at her side.  
  
The figure paused when it came across an arcade, looked down at a photo in her hand, and went on. She paused again when she approached the high school, looked at the photo again, and continued. Then she paused one last time when she approached a two-story house with a game shop built onto the front.  
  
The wind, unhindered by any other bodies, blew back the hood. The girl stared up at the house with dark eyes and smiled. "This is it," she said, to imprint it on her memory. "Right here." She let go of the photo and it blew away.  
  
"It took me two years, but I made it," the girl said. "The last of my kind. All I can do now is fulfill my mission and wait for the end. I have one person left before I'm finished."  
  
She smiled larger at she looked at the house, its innocent residents most certainly unaware of the danger about to come. The last person lived in a considerably poorer neighborhood. This was a change of pace. Not like it really mattered, it was just an observation.  
  
"I hope you realize that you're my last mission," she said to the house, speaking to her victim within. "Which means I'm going to try everything that ever worked until we're finished. Please have a nice sleep tonight, for it will be your last."  
  
With those words said, she turned and continued down the street, a confident smile on her face, certain nothing would stop her. Soon she was gone.  
  
The photo she had released to the wind had caught on a bush in the front yard of the house she had been standing in front of. It was a school photo of Yugi Moto.  
  
Written on were three simple words: Next to die.  
  
The photo somehow escaped the bush's branches and blew on down the street along with plenty of litter.  
  
**END PROLOGUE**  
  
Me: Well????? Does it sound interesting?  
  
Toli: It better! I wrote that!  
  
Me: Please be so kind and review nicely. If you don't like this then don't flame because all flames will be ignored.  
  
Toli: Okay, we'll see you in Chapter #1! 


	2. ONE: The Trip

Me: HEEEEEEEY EVERYBODY!

Toli: When did you get here? Oh well, welcome anyway!

Me: Here's the first chapter! Wheeeeee I'm so happy!

Toli: And neither of us owns any part of Yu-Gi-Oh. Okay, go!

CHAPTER ONE: THE TRIP

(two weeks later)

Yugi was busy doing homework when someone knocked on his bedroom door. Grandpa opened the door a bit and poked his head in. "Mind if I come in?" he asked.

Yugi looked up and smiled. "Course not! Come on in, Grandpa!" he invited in his normal cheerful manner.

Grandpa opened the door more and walked in. He sat on the bed and faced Yugi, who was at his desk. "Well, my boy," he began.

Uh oh, Yugi thought. Whenever Grandpa started any sentence, speech, sermon or prayer with "Well, my boy" it usually meant trouble. "Is something wrong?" Yugi asked, hoping it wasn't too bad news. He had been looking forward to having a worry-free weekend starting tomorrow afternoon.

"Oh, no, of course not," Grandpa said. "At least not at the moment."

"Grandpa, would you please just tell me what this is about?" Yugi asked, starting to get just a little testy.

Grandpa sighed. "Well, I've gotten a letter from my good friend Arthur Hawkins, and he's invited me to another excursion to Egypt this weekend."

Yugi raised an eyebrow. "Is that the bad news?" he asked.

"Well, Yugi my boy, I'm not exactly sure if I should leave you here by yourself."

Yugi should have seen it coming. Lately his grandfather had been worrying a lot lately over his safety. He was nervous about Yugi ever being home alone, like he expected an axe murderer, a kidnapper, and a thief to appear on their doorstep. At the same time. Yugi had no idea where the burst of overprotectiveness had come from.

"Grandpa," Yugi said, "I'll be fine home alone. Honest. I'm sixteen now, and I can take care of myself."

Grandpa sighed again. "I really would like to believe you, but I'm still worried about your safety. How do we know—"

"_Please_," Yugi implored. "I can take care of myself. Please don't make me come; I really would like to stay in Domino City this weekend."

Grandpa still looked undecided, so Yugi pushed a bit further. "Besides, I won't be alone."

At first Grandpa looked a little confused, then his face cleared. "Oh, of course! Hmm. Well, seeing as how badly you want to stay home, well…I suppose you could. But I want you to call me everyday."

"Oh, I will!" Yugi exclaimed, his face shining. "I promise. Thanks, Grandpa."

SOMEWHERE ELSE

"…Well, seeing as how badly you want to stay home, well…I suppose you could. But I want you to call me everyday."

"Oh, I will!" Yugi exclaimed, sounding very happy. "I promise. Thanks, Grandpa."

She laughed and cut off the connection. "So, the old man's leaving the entire continent for two weeks, is he?" she said to herself and the darkness around her. "I think that would work nicely into my plans. Very nicely, indeed. I almost feel bad enough to want to give them a warning. But that's not my style."

She had decided against going after him two weeks before and had spent some time learning more about her target. Things like where his school was, who were his friends, where did he like going, etc. It would make it so much easier to have success if she knew everything about him. Now she felt sufficiently informed and was ready to strike.

She picked up the bag sitting beside her on the ground and tossed it in the air, catching it very easily. "Now I get to strike. Finally! It's taken two years to find the right moment, and it's not slipping through my fingers this time."

An evil grin spread across her face at the thought of finally being successful. "I hope you're ready, little Yugi Moto, because if you aren't…well, so much the better!

"This is going to be fun."

END CHAPTER

Me: I hope you guys liked that! In case you didn't like it, well, I can't help that because I'm doing what I can. If you did like it, plz plz pleeeez review, because I would appreciate it sooo much!

Toli: And so would I! We would love to hear from you!

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 2…Yugi gets excited over having the house to himself. But he's in a lot of danger, and he doesn't even know it.**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Toli: Okay, this one is to **Yami-AJ Yu-Yu-InuCaptor**. About your comment...I'm glad you think so!!! We hope you'll continue to read.

Me: My turn! Next up is **Silver Moon Phoenix**. I know, I can't belive it either!

Toli: -.-;

Me: Anyway, keep reading!

Toli: Last one is **Youko/Kurama's Rose**. Thank you VEEEEERY much! We appreciate the encouragement! Don't go away!

Me: Bye everybody! See you next time!!!!!!!!!


	3. TWO: The Suspicion

Me: Welcome back! We were waiting for you!

Toli: We'd like to thank all the little people we stepped on…no I'm joking. But we'd like to thank the reviewers for giving us a chance.

Me: Yeah, the responses to the reviews are at the end of the chapter! So we'll see you there!

Toli: In case you thought we different from the other writers, Yu-Gi-Oh isn't ours. Hey, that sounds familiar!

**CHAPTER TWO: THE SUSPICION**

Yugi hung out the door and waved at his grandpa's leaving bus until it was out of sight. It was the next morning, and Grandpa had left five minutes before Yugi was going to head to school.

Shutting the game shop's door, Yugi looked around and smiled. Two weeks of having the house and the shop—all to himself! It was like moving somewhere else, only he hadn't moved. "This is going to be a great two weeks," Yugi thought aloud.

"Don't forget that I'm here," a familiar voice said out of nowhere. Yugi looked over his shoulder and saw Yami, transparent, standing behind him.

"Of course I didn't forget you!" Yugi replied cheerfully. "You're the only reason I got to stay!"

"I noticed," Yami said dryly. "And by the way, I don't like being used as a trump card. I actually wouldn't have minded going with your grandfather to Egypt. I might have learned something interesting there."

Yugi felt a flash of guilt, realizing he hadn't asked the spirit what he felt like doing. "I'm sorry," he apologized sincerely. "I didn't think of that." He wondered if the spirit was angry. Briefly he considered reading Yami's emotions, but they had stopped doing that as frequently.

"That's all right. I forgive you," Yami said with a rare smile. Yugi smiled back. Of course Yami wouldn't be any more than a little annoyed. He had once even admitted to Yugi that he could hardly ever get really annoyed at the highschooler unless it was something really bad.

"Thanks. Anyway, I should get going for school," Yugi said with a glance at his watch. "Do you wanna come?"

"Hmmm," Yami considered. "I suppose I should. I would like to see it again."

"You're the only one," Yugi said.

AFTER SCHOOL

"So you got da whole place t' yourself?" Joey asked again.

Yugi nodded. "And for two whole weeks starting today."

"Wow," Tristan commented. "I'm surprised Mr. Moto went for it. I mean, no offense, but he's been acting kind of ticky lately."

"Maybe he stopped," Serenity suggested.

"What I wonder is _why _your grandfather was acting so 'ticky'," Tea said to Yugi.

Yugi shrugged. "I don't know."

The five of them had just gotten out of school. Now they were all headed for Yugi's house. Yami was following them, looking at all the modern stuff, but he had made himself invisible to everybody's eyes so as not to disturb their conversation.

"Hey, maybe we could have a party t'night at your house, Yug!" Joey suggested eagerly.

"Joey, are you nuts, man?" Tristan replied. "That's a stupid idea."

"I don' recall askin' _you_, Tristan," Joey growled back.

"Come on, guys, don't fight," Yugi pleaded. "You do that enough already."

By this time they had made it to Yugi's house. Yugi pulled out his key and opened the shop's door. They all walked into the shop. It was almost strange to not see Yugi's grandpa behind the counter either wiping it down or looking through another box of merchandise. Yugi wondered how far away his grandpa was now.

As they made their way through the front door of the house, Yugi felt a sharp pang inside of him. He immediately realized it was from Yami.

Yugi tapped into the mind link. /Yami, is something wrong?/

Yami didn't answer.

/Yami?!/

_…Nothing's wrong. At least, I don't think so._

That answer didn't exactly assure Yugi, but he left it alone. He followed his friends into the house.

ELSEWHERE…

Yami didn't like that he had had to give Yugi such a doubtful answer, but he wasn't sure at all himself. Just when Yugi and his friends had been about to enter the house, Yami had heard the sounds. A low, sinister laugh, and then a snort. All kinds of possibilities had immediately risen in Yami's mind, which had unwittingly alerted Yugi.

Yami had to calm down. Yugi hadn't had any—well, many—problems for one and a half years straight, but now and then the strange occurrence came up and started Yami worrying again. He was pretty sure Yugi didn't want to be caught in another terrifying adventure.

After giving Yugi his unsure answer, Yami listened closely to see if he could hear anything else suspicious. But there was nothing except the sound of the others talking. Yugi had gotten over it pretty quickly, for now he was just conversing with his friends; but Yami was still suspicious. He'd seen—and heard—too many strange things that led to danger for them to just let it pass by unnoticed.

Yami decided to stay alert for a little while longer.

Just in case.

END CHAPTER

Me: I hope you guys liked that one!

Toli: And we also hope you'll come back for the next chapter!

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 3…Something happens to alert Yami of the danger, but you'll never guess who makes it happen...**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Mena: Response time!!! This goes out to **Firezlight**. First, hi! Second, thanks for reviewing! Third, we are so happy you like our story! Please continue to read and review!

Toli: I'll take this one. (grin) Yo, **DMoS13**, you're right, it is gonna be good. Please continue reading! And **Torru**...heh heh heh...you never know until you try...hahaha...

Mena: Toli!

Toli: What?!


	4. THREE: The Confusion

Toli: This is Chapter 3!

Me: We're so happy you like it!

Toli: We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or any of the characters associated with it. But we do pretend…

Note: I changed the way Yami and Yugi communicate a little because my computer keeps deleting the symbols I put on here. So, here's the change!

_Yugi to Yami_

_**Yami to Yugi**_

CHAPTER THREE: THE CONFUSION

The next day was…Saturday! So there was no school. Yugi invited his friends over again and they stayed for hours, talking and hanging out.

Yami stayed inside the Puzzle. He was still looking out for anything weird.

"Why don't we go to the arcade?" Tea suggested.

"Yeah!" Joey agreed loudly. "I can kick somebody else's butt on dat game I was playin'!"

Tristan snorted. "I _let _you win that time," he said.

Joey waved a hand. "Whateva. Anyway, let's gooooo!"

Everyone put their shoes back on and left. Yugi locked the house door and the shop door behind them. Briefly he tapped into the mind link to see what Yami was up to.

_Yami, why have you been so quiet lately? Is something wrong?_

_**Well…no. Nothing, Yugi, nothing at all is wrong.**_

But even without having to read Yami's emotions, Yugi could tell Yami was lying. But why? Why would Yami lie to Yugi? It didn't make any sense at all.

"…And d_at's _how I know I beat Tristan fair 'n square wit' nona his 'lettin me win' crap," Joey was saying to Tea.

"All right, Joey, you've made your point," Tea said exasperatingly. "Gee, Yugi, you'd think he'd know how to not run off at the mouth by now, wouldn't you?"

"What?" Yugi asked stupidly. Then he remembered what she had said. "Yeah, right, of course," he answered quickly.

All three of them looked at Yugi strangely. "Is anything wrong, Yugi?" Tea asked.

Yugi shook his head. "Everything's fine," he said. "I was just…trying to remember if I had locked both doors."

"Oh," Joey said. "Didja?"

Yugi nodded.

'Okay," Tea said. They all continued on.

As they got closer to the arcade, more traffic appeared. The cars were also going pretty fast, since it was lunch hour. The noise was pretty loud, so none of them tried to talk to each other.

Yugi was following behind Tea, still pondering why Yami had lied, when he noticed that Joey had slowed and was walking directly behind him. He didn't pay much attention to it, though. Yugi looked up ahead and saw the arcade, still several yards away.

Then, in a split second, something very strange—and very scary—occurred. Yugi had been trying to estimate how many more minutes it would be until they made it to the arcade, only to get his mind off Yami, when he felt Joey's hands on his back. Before Yugi could raise a question, Joey shoved him very hard to one side.

Yugi stumbled to his right, balanced awkwardly on the edge of the sidewalk for a nanosecond, then tripped off the sidewalk and fell flat on his back in the middle of the street, hitting his head hard on the asphalt.

Yugi heard two noises as he looked up at the shifting sky in a daze. The first was the horn of an eighteen-wheeler blaring as it beared down on him, and the second noise was Tea screaming.

I'm going to get run over! Yugi thought frantically.

Before he could linger on that thought too long, someone grabbed his shoulders and pulled him very quickly out of traffic. The eighteen-wheeler zoomed by, its driver not seeming to care that he had nearly flattened a teenager.

Tristan had jumped into the street and saved Yugi in the nick of time, and now he had turned on Joey. "_What _is your problem, Joey?!" he yelled in Joey's face.

Yugi sat on the sidewalk, unable to move, simply trying to catch his breath. Tea knelt beside him and looked ready to cry. "Yugi, are you okay?" she asked in a trembling voice.

"I…I think so," Yugi replied, not exactly sure if that was true. He wanted to throw up, and probably would have if Yami hadn't busted into his thoughts.

_**Yugi, are you all right?! What happened?!!**_

_...I think Joey pushed me. But I'm sure he didn't mean to shove me into the traffic. Maybe he was just fooling around…_

_**I'm not so sure about that**,_Yami replied, sounding very angry. _**I saw him when you didn't, Yugi. He was trying to kill you. On purpose.**_

Yugi couldn't believe it._ But why would he want to do that?_

Yugi heard Yami sigh. **_I don't know, Yugi_.**

Tristan was still yelling in Joey's face, shouting about how Joey could have killed Yugi. "If that was your idea of a joke, it sure wasn't funny!"

Joey raised his hands and looked very confused. "But Tristan, dat's jus' it—I didn' shove Yugi. I was jus walkin' behind 'im. I dunno what happened!"

"Do you honestly expect me to believe that?!" Tristan roared.

"Yeah, because it's da truth!"

"All right, guys, enough!" Tea said, getting between them. "Whether Joey did it on accident or didn't do it at all, the important thing is that Yugi is safe and unharmed."

Tristan still looked like he wanted to punch Joey's lights out, but he sighed. "You're right, Tea."

"I think I need to go home," Yugi said, getting up on legs that were still not quite steady.

"We'll walk you there," Tea offered immediately.

Tristan nodded. "And _you_"—he pointed at Joey—"can walk in front, so we can all see you."

SOMEWHERE ELSE

She smiled with satisfaction at the brown-haired boy's reaction to the "accident". "Perfect," she said. "Soon I'll be able to divide them all, right down the middle, so Yugi can't have his precious circle of friends to rely upon. Then I will complete my objective.

"I simply can't wait until then."

END CHAPTER

Me: I hope you all liked that!

Toli: Yeah this is where the story gets plotty.

Me: "Plotty"?

Toli: Well, exciting is too formal. I like plotty better.

Me: Whatever floats your paper-mache boat. Anyway, please come back for our fourth chapter! And if you have a better name for this story, please let me know!

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 4…There's another "accident", but this one is even worse than the first…**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Mena: Welcome!! Our first response goes out to **Yami-AJ Yu-Yu-InuCaptor**. Well, I guess he did, didn't he? Lucky for you, it wasn't Tea. Please come again!

Toli: All right, next one's for **Silver Moon Phoenix**. Hey, Yami did stay alert, didn't he? And yes, the mystery person struck, just not like you might have thought. Don't forget to look for the next installment, okay?

Mena: Okay, we're out this piece!


	5. FOUR: The Attack

Me: Wahoo! You came back!

Toli: This is so exciting!

Me: First, mega-thanks for all of the nice reviews. And now here's Chapter #4!

Toli: And, in case you wondered, Yu-Gi-Oh _still _doesn't belong to us!

CHAPTER FOUR: THE ATTACK

After his friends walked him home, Yugi immediately went up to his room and collapsed on the bed. He took a three-hour nap. The day's adventure had completely worn him out as well as scared him out of his mind.

When he woke up, his head was very, very sore. It took a moment for him to remember why. He had hit his head on the asphalt when he fell.

_**You didn't "fall",**_Yami's voice interrupted his slow thoughts, _**Joey pushed you.**_Yami still sounded ticked.

_Yami, I really don't believe Joey did it on purpose,_ Yugi defended. _It had to have been an accident. I mean, what other explanation could there be?_

Yami didn't say anything, but Yugi could sense that the spirit still wholeheartedly believed Joey pushed Yugi on purpose. Before Yami could say another word, Yugi had sat up.

"You can believe what you want," Yugi said aloud, knowing Yami was still listening, "but I know Joey would never hurt me on purpose."

Yami didn't reply. Yugi figured that they had both simply agreed to disagree and left his room. He went downstairs to get a drink from the kitchen and found, to his surprise, Tea sitting in the living room.

"Tea?" Yugi questioned.

Tea whirled at his voice. "Yugi! You're finally…you're awake," she said, worry crossing her features. "I was concerned about you so…I stayed to make sure you'd be all right. I hope that doesn't bother you."

"Of course it doesn't!" Yugi replied, smiling even though it hurt his head. "Thanks for caring."

"You're welcome," Tea said, smiling big. Something about her smile looked strange. Like it had been cut out of a magazine and glued over her real mouth. But Yugi didn't really care about that. It didn't seem very important.

"So…did you want something to eat?" Tea asked. "I could cook you something, or—"

"No thanks, Tea, I'll just get a drink," Yugi told her.

A nervous look replaced the concern. "Are you sure? You might not want to neglect eating after…what happened, y'know."

Yugi smiled again. "I'm sure. I mean, even though I nearly got ran over, it's not like I suffered some long illness."

"Right," Tea said, again smiling that fake-looking smile.

Yugi headed for the kitchen. Almost immediately, Tea got up and followed him there. "Maybe you should rest, and I'll get you your drink," she offered hastily.

Yugi looked over his shoulder at her. Tea looked nervous and—it seemed—a little frustrated. Or did he imagine the latter? "No, thanks, Tea, I can get it myself," he assured her.

"But Yugi—" Tea started.

"Tea I can get it myself!" Yugi replied a little too loudly, hurting his head and his friend.

Tea looked wounded. "I just wanted to help," she said.

Yugi felt guilty. "I know. I'm sorry, Tea, I guess I'm still just a little freaked out about everything that's happened."

Tea smiled again. "That's okay. So do you think you'll be okay?" she asked as she leaned against the counter.

Yugi nodded as he looked up to reach for a glass in the high up cupboard. "Yeah, I think I'll be fine," he said. "I can't get spooked that easily."

"That's good to hear," Tea said. Yugi was surprised at how her voice changed. It sounded a little lower, and just a little creepier. "Do you want some help with that, Yugi Moto?"

Yugi looked up at the glass he was trying to reach. His middle finger could barely touch it. "Sure, Tea," he answered, wondering why she used his last name. That wasn't like her. Neither was the glue-on smile, or the low creepy voice.

"Say, Tea," Yugi began as Tea stretched over him to reach the glass, "are you feeling all right?"

"Fine, Yugi," Tea said in the weird voice. "How about you?"

Yugi was confused and a little scared. "Well, I'm okay, but you already asked me—"

_**Yugi, move!**_Yami yelled.

Almost at the same moment Yami had spoken, Yugi dodged to the left. He had learned to obey whenever Yami gave him a loud command.

THUD!

Yugi almost fell on the floor but caught himself. He turned to see what had made the thud and gasped.

Tea was standing in front of the counter. She was yanking very hard on the handle of a large butcher's knife that was half embedded in the counter Yugi had just been leaning on.

Yugi was wide-eyed, half in amazement, half in fear. Had Tea just tried to _stab_ him?!

_**Yugi, you have got to get out of here,**_Yami said to him. _**And right now.**_

Yugi didn't move. He was standing next to Tea, staring first at her face, which had an angry and frustrated glare on it, and then at her hands, which were slowly pulling the knife out of the counter.

_**Yugi, GO!**_

Finally Yugi snapped out of it, just as Tea pulled her deadly weapon free. She lunged towards him, the knife gripped tightly in her right hand. Yugi dived out of the way and the knife sliced harmlessly through air.

Yugi ran to the entrance to the kitchen and looked back. Tea wasn't coming after him, but she still brandished the knife, and was still glaring at him.

"Tea, why are you doing this?" Yugi exclaimed, hoping to reason with his friend. "What's wrong with you?"

"What's wrong? I think you mean what's _right_," Tea said in a nasty-sounding voice that seemed so wrong on her. "It's about time I got rid of you and that stupid spirit in your Puzzle!"

Yugi gasped, and he could feel Yami's anger burning inside the Puzzle. "Please, Tea, think about this," Yugi implored.

"There's nothing to think about!" Tea snarled. "Now don't move so this can go faster!"

She lunged again. Yugi turned and bolted. He ran up the stairs, hoping to lock himself in his room. But before he could make it all the way upstairs, he felt something grab his ankle and pull him down. He bounced off the wall and three stairs before coming to rest upside down, sprawled over five steps. Tea's head appeared upside down—to him—with her hair hanging down. She had the knife pointed right at Yugi's chest, and she brought it down with startling speed.

_Yami, help me!_ Yugi screamed through the mind link.

Immediately Yami took over with a flash of the Puzzle. He grabbed Tea's wrist, just before the knife hit his chest, and used his powers to help him throw her off balance. She tripped backwards and fell all the halfway down the stairs she had run up, while Yami flipped over and got to his feet.

Tea glared at him from the bottom of the stairs when she got up. "That's you, Yami, isn't it?" she said. "It's about time you came out of hiding instead of letting Yugi do all the field work for you!" She immediately started back up the stairs. As soon as she was in arm's length of him, Yami shoved her back down the stairs.

"You may be my friend," Yami said as calmly as he could with his building anger, "but unlike Yugi, I have no qualms about hurting you if I have to."

"Why don't you come down here and say that again?" Tea challenged.

Yami wanted to make sure she didn't use that knife, but he knew he couldn't let anything happen to him or Yugi would suffer the most. So he turned and ran back upstairs. Instead of going to Yugi's room, he turned the other way and headed for the bathroom. Whirling, he slammed the door shut just as Tea drove the knife at him. She embedded the knife so far in the door that Yami could see the point of it on the other side.

Yami wanted to check on Yugi to see if he was all right, but Tea was already yanking the knife out of the door and would soon open it and come for him. Her super strength was unexplainable and very dangerous. Yami looked for a solution-—and found one.

Tea pulled the knife out all the way and threw open the now slashed door. "All right, now I have you in a corner," she said to Yami, and ran at him. At the last second, Yami stepped aside and she crashed into the sink.

Instantly Yami mashed her head down into the sinkful of waiting water. While she thrashed and tried to come up for air, Yami pried the knife out of her hands and tossed it in the toilet to hide it. He dropped the lid and let Tea's head up.

Tea was soaking wet from neck up. Her hair dripped continually, and water even dripped off her eyelashes. She stared at Yami with a confused expression. "Yami? What are we doing in the bathroom? And why is my head wet?"

Yami didn't answer He just crossed his arms over his chest.

END CHAPTER

Me: Thank you for reading the chapter!

Toli: We really appreciate it!

Me: And a note. You may wonder why Yami shoved Tea's head into the sink instead of just using some of his powers on her. Well, he would have gladly hurt Tea to protect Yugi's body, but he was pretty sure Yugi wouldn't want Tea hurt. Okay, so we have that settled, so…

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 5…Yugi decides to become a little distant from Joey and Tea and even Tristan because he does not want another attempt made on his life. But what's really going on?**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Me: All right, it's that time again! Saying hello and thanks and answering questions and whatnot. So let's go! First off is the response for **Dagger Maxwell**. Hi! Thank you _very_ much for liking our story, it's people like you that keep us going. Your nice reviews are the gasoline to our car, the ink to our pen, the legs to our bodies!

Toli: O.o;

Me: Okay, moving on...

Toli: Okay, the next one is to **Pharaoh Atemu's Angel**. We are, like Mena so strangely said, very glad that you like our story. Most of this is me, y'know, so I appreciate the encouragement! We most definitely hope you'll come back!

Me: My turn again! Next up is **Dark mage of sea 13**'s response. Thank you, thank you. (bow) our goal is to make it spooky enough to scare you, so we're obviously succeeding. Now, onto...

Toli: What happened to Torru?

Me: (grimace) Oh. Toli, you answer him.

Toli: All right. (grin). I hope you know I'm a little hard to impress if you're not being genuine, but just in case you are, my number is--

Me: This is a public website! You can't do that!

Toli: Party pooper.

Me: Okay, next up is **Silver Moon Phoenix**. See, that's the point, we're trying to keep you guessing! And no, she is not done with him AT ALL. At least you like it!

Toli: Next is the response to **BeautyBabe**. More encouragement! Just what we need! Thank you very much, and we hope you will keep reading. Don't let anything stop you from reading!

Me: Last but not least is **Phoenix727**'s response. We won't tell you everything, but we'll allay a couple of your fears...no, our bad girl has no Millennium Item. She's doing something else. How's that?

Toli: Wow, six reviews!

Me: That's what I call cool! To everyone, please come back next time and review! Please! Thanks! Okay, seeya!!


	6. FIVE: The Fear

Me: Welcome back everybody!

Toli: This is the next chapter in what seems to be a successful story. Please enjoy!

Me: First of all, very, very sorry it took so long, but, as you know, school has started and I am now in chains. But, aside from that, everything's fine! We'll see you at the end of the chapter!

Toli: And I have a signed letter from Yugi saying we don't him, his show, or any of his friends. So there!

CHAPTER FIVE: THE FEAR

"Hi guys!" Yugi said cheerfully.

"Hi Yugi!" all of his friends said in unison. They had all met up while walking to the arcade.

"Look, a semi," Tea said, pointing.

Immediately Joey picked Yugi up by the back of his shirt and tossed him into traffic. Yugi landed flat on his back. A horn blared loudly. Yugi scrambled up and raced to the sidewalk to safety.

"Joey!" Yugi exclaimed over his pounding heart. "Why did you do that?!"

All of his friends looked at him with evil stares. Suddenly Tea whipped out a knife and tried to spear Yugi to the concrete. Yugi rolled out of the way.

Yugi stood up, scared. What next? His unasked question was answered when he heard an engine revving. Yugi looked to his left and saw Tristan zooming towards him, pushing his motorcycle to full speed.

"Tristan! You'll kill me!" Yugi yelled.

Tristan didn't seem to care. He kept on. Yugi tried to move but was rooted to the spot. He could only stare at the motorcycle coming closer.

"Help me!" he cried. "Someone please help me!"

He found he could move and immediately dodged to the side. He hit the floor hard.

Yugi gasped for air like he had just come up from a long stay underwater. He lay on the floor shaking like a leaf in the wind. _What…just…happened?_

Very slowly, and very reluctantly, Yugi looked around, hoping certain somebodies weren't waiting to kill him.

Fortunately he was safe in his room.

"It was…it was…" Yugi could barely speak. _A dream, _he finished in his mind. But it had seemed so real. Too real.

"Yugi, are you all right?" The voice of Yami, though laced with concern, brought immediate relief to Yugi's mind. Yugi looked up and saw Yami, transparent, kneeling beside him, looking very worried.

Yugi nodded because he didn't trust himself to speak. The awful memories of the nightmare were playing over and over in his head. They were combined with the real memories of Joey shoving him into traffic—whether that was an accident or not—and Tea chasing him around the house with a knife. Would Tristan be the one to strike next? What if Tea tried again? Maybe he was being irrational, but he had good reason. It was a little easy to believe Joey hadn't meant to do what he did. But Tea jamming the knife into the counter he should have been leaning on—and trying to stab him on the stairs—and nearly cornering Yami in the bathroom—there was no way that those actions or her frightening words were accidents.

"Did you have a nightmare?" Yami asked.

"Yes, I…" Yugi still didn't seem to have the ability to talk right. He simply got up, sat on the bed, and collapsed on his side.

"What's going on?" he said barely above a whisper. "Why are my best friends all after me? Was it something I did or said?"

"Yugi, don't even start thinking like that," Yami scolded him, though gently. "There is nothing under the sun that you could say or do to offend them enough for them to attempt murdering you."

Yugi could feel tears coming. "Then what _is _it? What's happening, Yami?"

Yami sighed as he sat on the bed next to Yugi. Of course, the bed didn't sink down any more. "I can't give you a definite answer on that, Yugi," he said. "All I can tell you is you may want to be more careful. Who knows what could happen next."

"So what? Am I supposed to stay away from my friends, keep them out of my house, not speak to them or see them anymore, not go anywhere with them, not…" Yugi couldn't even finish the sentence. He already had tears rolling over the bridge of his nose and onto his pillow.

Yami put a calming hand on Yugi's shoulder. "Until we find out what's really going on, that might not be such a bad idea. I know that they're your friends, and mine—"

Yugi interrupted with a loud sniff.

"—And mine too," Yami continued, "but there is obviously something wrong. And we can't risk your life anymore until we get some clues about what's happening."

Yugi sniffed loudly again. "I know you're right, but I wish you weren't," he half-said and half-sobbed.

Once again, Yami said nothing.

TEA'S ROOM

Tea couldn't sleep. She was replaying the afternoon's scenes in her mind, the parts before Yami practically threw her out of Yugi's house. The earliest thing she remembered was walking to the front door with Yugi. The latest thing she remembered was standing in the bathroom, her head soaking wet, staring at Yami's angry face. And between that…she couldn't remember. What had gone on? She had noticed a big stab mark in the bathroom door and another on the steps. What in the world had happened?

Maybe tomorrow she could talk to Yugi about it. Hopefully Yami wouldn't answer the phone, because he seemed pretty ticked at her, for some reason.

END CHAPTER

Me: I hope you enjoyed!

Toli: I! I! I! You always say "I" and never "we"!!!

Me: Oh, sorry. (blushes)

Toli: Anyway, a note. _We _are sorry if Yugi seemed like a wuss or something in this chapter, but it was supposed to be a touching scene and people always cry in touching scenes!

Me: And please come back for the next chapter!

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 6…Yugi and Tea realize that someone could be behind this pulling the strings. But what happens when _Tristan _goes after both Yugi _and _Tea?**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Mena: Let's roll! First off is a response to **Pharaoh Atemu's Angel**. Hi again! Thank you so so much for reviewing so nicely. We're glad you liked the knife scene. (looks proud) _I _came up with the idea.

Toli: Let's move on. Next up is **Dagger Maxwell**. Yes, if you can imagine Tea trying to kill Yugi with a butcher's knife, then you should lay off the scary movies. O.O; Come to think of it, I guess I should too...

Mena: n.n; So anyway! Our next review came from **Dark mage of sea 13 **and the increasingly annoying Torru.

Toli: Torru's fine to me... n.n

Mena: What-EVER. Anyhow, please don't hesitate to lock that guy up, because NOBODY's going to get my sister! And thanks for enjoying the chapter and threatening to hurt our bad girl!

Toli: Oh, just ignore her. Anyway, next is **Silver Moon Phoenix**, who we just accidentally skipped. Whoops! Anyhow, that's the point: we're going to constantly shove Yugi to the edge of the cliff of death until he either falls off or someone saves him. What do you think will happen? The result might surprise you...

Mena: My turn! Next is **StubsMcGimp**. Hi! Welcome to the story! We are reeeeally happy that you like it. Please come back next time!

Toli: Okay. Our last reviewer is **SilverTiger-GoldenPhoenix**, who gave us a whole 4 reviews at one time! I like you already! Thank you for all four, and tell Kira I said hi!

Mena: Yay! So many people like us!

Toli: You are all invited to tell your friends and come back next time. See you there!


	7. SIX: The Realization

Me: You're back! Great! We're very sorry for taking so long, but I got grounded for flunking a math test.

Toli: We're so happy to see you! BIG HUGS AND MUSHY THANKS to everybody who reviewed so nicely. You can pick up your BIG HUG AND MUSHY THANKS at the end of the chapter.

Me: So let's get the chapter started!

Toli: And now I have a signed letter from _Yami _saying we _still _don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, so stop asking already!

CHAPTER SIX: THE REALIZATION

The phone rang. Yugi jumped in surprise and looked at the clock. 10:16 AM. He wasn't expecting a call. Maybe it was Grandpa.

Yugi picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Yugi, it's Tea! Hi!"

Yugi started again. Why was she calling? "Hi, Tea," he replied a little nervously.

"Listen, Yugi, I was just calling to make sure you were all right," Tea went on. "I don't really know what happened last evening, but I'm hoping you're all right."

"You are?" Yugi replied a little disbelievingly. "The last time you asked me that, you tried to kill me!"

There was a short silence. "I did?" Tea questioned. "Are you sure that wasn't a dream?"

"No!" Yugi exclaimed. "You grabbed a butcher's knife and tried to impale me to my own counter!"

Another silence. "But—but Yugi," Tea faltered, "I don't remember ever—"

"I'm sorry you don't remember, but you did!" Yugi interrupted. "You tried to stab me several times until Yami finally shoved your head into a sinkful of water and got the knife away from you!"

"Is that how my head got wet?" Tea asked.

Yugi couldn't even speak. How could she not remember hurling insults at him, trying to kill him, chasing him up the stairs—?

Unless something else—or some_one_ else—did it through her. Sure, at first thought it seemed farfetched, but considering all the hell Yugi went through two years ago, anything was possible now.

"Tea," Yugi said, "what exactly can you remember about yesterday?"

"Well," Tea began, "I remember us going to the arcade. Then Joey shoved you into traffic. Tristan saved you and yelled at Joey. We walked you home. I decided to stay behind and make sure you'd be all right. Then…after that the only thing I remember was standing in your bathroom with my head soaked and staring at Yami who looked very angry."

"Then maybe it wasn't you!" Yugi exclaimed, his heart leaping at the thought of not having to avoid his friends.

"Wha—?" Tea sounded confused. "What do you mean?"

"I…it's…Just come over to my house, Tea, and I'll tell you!"

"…Well, all right, I'll see you there."

They hung up.

"Don't you see, Yami?" Yugi exclaimed, turning and finding a transparent Yami behind him. "Maybe it wasn't them after all! Maybe someone else was _controlling _them from somewhere else! It would make perfect sense!"

Yami crossed his arms. "Well, if that is true, that turns up a new problem: there's someone out there who wants to kill you and they're doing it through your friends hoping you won't fight back."

Yugi's earlier excitement drained out of him. "Well, at least it wasn't my friends," he said.

"_If _your theory is correct," Yami answered pessimistically.

"It has to be," Yugi said, partly to himself. "That's the only way this all could make sense."

Tea was at the house in the next twenty minutes. She and Yugi sat on the couch in the living room. Yami, half-transparent, stood right behind the couch.

Carefully Yugi explained his theory to Tea, and to some extent to Yami also. Tea listened but still seemed confused. Yami, however, understood perfectly.

"So let me get this straight," Tea said when Yugi had finished. "You think that someone took over me and Joey and tried to use us to kill you?"

Yugi nodded firmly. "That's exactly what I'm saying," he confirmed. "Think about it, Tea. It's no stranger than what we went through with Marik, right? And if I am right, it would explain a lot of things."

"You're probably right," Tea said. "But that means there's someone out there who we most likely don't know who wants to kill you! What will we do?"

Yugi shrugged. "I honestly have no idea."

The doorbell attached to the side door rang. "I guess I'll get that," Yugi said. He stood up to go to the side door. Tea and Yami followed.

Yugi opened the door and looked out. No one was there. "Hello?" Yugi called out, taking a few steps outside.

The revving of an engine caught his attention. Yugi turned to see what it was, and froze as he saw a motorcycle headed straight for him. He needed to move, he wanted to move, his mind screamed at him to move, but he was frozen as if paralyzed.

"Yugi!" a shrill voice cried.

Yugi felt someone slam into him from behind and knock him several feet forward. The motorbike zipped between them and the door. Yugi felt the wind it caused on his feet.

Tea had knocked Yugi out of the way just in time. They both stood up as the motorcycle made a sharp screeching turn and came to face them. It revved a few times before the rider took off his large helmet and tossed it away.

Yugi gasped. So did Tea.

It was Tristan.

"I hope you both don't mind me coming over!" Tristan said. "By the way, Tea, I was wondering why you didn't get the job done yesterday."

Yugi felt Tea stiffen behind him. "I would never hurt Yugi on purpose!" she shouted at Tristan. "Tristan, you are not in your right mind and you've got to snap out of it!"

Tristan snorted. Yugi noticed out of the corner of his eye that Yami jerked like someone had hit him with an arrow. "Whatever. If you can't do this right, Tea, then I'll do the job and you can join Yugi!"

Tristan revved the engine again.

"Somehow we've got to snap him out of it," Yugi said.

"Forget Tristan!" Tea exclaimed, her voice high with nervousness, "we've got to escape before Tristan mows us down!"

_**Yugi, don't move and don't let Tea move,**_ Yami instructed suddenly.

_Why not?_

**_I don't have time to explain. Just neither of you move._**

"Yami says don't move," Yugi relayed the message to Tea.

"What?!" Tea cried.

Yugi gripped her wrist firmly. "I trust Yami. He won't let us get hurt."

Tristan revved the engine once more, and then gunned it and sped towards Yugi and Tea. Yugi could feel Tea shaking in his grip, and, truth be told, he was scared himself. He hoped Yami knew what he was doing.

The motorcycle came closer and closer. Yugi could sense Tea wanted to run, and so did he. But he was sure Yami wouldn't let them down.

Two seconds before Tristan would have hit them, Yugi saw a brief black flash.

One second before Tristan would have hit them, he didn't.

The motorcycle stopped abruptly. But its wheels were still driving forward. A split second later, the motorcycle bounced off an invisible wall and went flying. Tristan came off of the seat and landed in some bushes, while his bike crashed into a conveniently placed Dumpster.

Tea nearly fainted with relief. Yami had used his powers to put up a force field in front of them. Yugi sighed and released Tea's arm.

In the bushes, Tristan struggled to get up. "Eh…what happened?" He looked up. "Yugi? Tea? What am I doing here?"

"Well—er—that's kind of hard to explain," Tea said, only beginning to recover from fright.

"But we'll try anyway," Yugi finished.

END CHAPTER

Me: There! I think that one was good!

Toli: But there's still plenty to come!

Me: Stay with us, please!

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 7…Yugi has his first encounter with the evil person trying to kill him. But could it be that Yami already knows who she is?**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Mena: Thanks for dropping by! Let's respond to those reviews!

Toli: Mena has given me complete control over the review responses. Mwa ha ha ha! Anyway, our first response is to **SilverTiger-GoldenPhoenix**. It's a pleasure for you to review our story for us as well! Thanks for reviewing so nicely. And hi again, Kira! Keep those eyes glued to the screen, okay?

Mena: Yes! Please do!

Toli: All right, next we have a response to **Aya**. Thank you for reviewing! Please come back next time!

Mena: Yeah! Do that!

Toli: Okay, next up is **Dagger Maxwell**. Yes, Tristan next. Isn't it terrible? Mwa ha ha! And yes, I love that little guy to bits too! We can love him to bits together, I suppose.

Mena: Why would you wanna do that?

Toli: Quiet. Next we have **Millenniumgrl126**. We're glad you like the story! As we said before, no, our bad girl does not possess the Millennium Rod, but that is all I'm going to tell you! Don't miss our next installment!

Mena: No! Don't!

Toli: O.-; Moving on. Next is our response **to Silver Moon Phoenix**'s review. Ha, lucky for you, Yugi's near-death experience was only a dream. But it won't be next time!! And, a little clue, it isn't something Yami or Yugi did. It's a whole other reason. You'll probably never guess what.

Mena: That's right!

Toli: -.-; Anyway, next will be **DMoS13**. Hi! Thank you for the compliment. And when you tell Torru about this chapter, tell him I'm sorry he's on lockdown.

Mena: I'm not.

Toli: QUIET. Our next response goes out to **ShiningAngel**. Thank you for loving our story and we are both sorry you couldn't post before. And as to your question, first you have to get a screen name, and to do that you need an e-mail address. Try clicking on Register, which is next to Login. You ought to know what to do after that. And, WITHOUT INTERRUPTION...

Mena:... n.n;

Toli: We will have our next response, to **StubsMcGimp**. Like Mena said, you are very welcome to join us, and do a plug for us elsewhere if you could. You scared us both when you said you didn't like the story, but when you said you loved it, we felt better.

Mena: Speak for yourself! I got freaked!

Toli: SHUT UP! Ahem. Anyway, you made her happy, and you happy, now I'm happy, and Lexie is happy. Don't ask me who Lexie is. Don't worry about the sugar happy either; Mena does that a lot too. I have to confiscate Sweet-n-Low packets every day.

Mena: Do not!

Toli: Stop lying. Anyhow, thank you or joining us, and we'll see you next time! Let's go, Mena!


	8. SEVEN: The Recognition

Me: You came back!

Toli: We're glad to see you!

Me: Chapter 7! Yay! We've made it so far!

Toli: And if you haven't figured out yet we don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, then you have not been paying enough attention!

CHAPTER SEVEN: THE RECOGNITION

So it was discussed. Yugi and Tea had explained the circumstances to Tristan, and then they had called Joey, told him to come over, and told him everything too. At their urging, he brought Serenity too, because she could also be used against Yugi.

"Okay, so we know now. How's it gonna help?" Joey asked.

"Maybe, since we know about it, if whoever it is tries to use one of us again, we can resist," Tea said thoughtfully.

"It all sounds scary to me," Serenity said.

"Me too, considering I'm the target," Yugi said.

"Our next mission should be to find out who's doing this and stop them before Yugi gets really hurt," Tristan declared.

Everyone agreed. "But _how_?" Yugi asked.

Everyone shrugged.

After discussing the subject even more, everyone else left. Yugi, discovering how late it was, realized he was supposed to have called Grandpa half an hour ago. Before he could get to the phone, however, it rang.

Yugi picked it up. "Hello?"

"Yugi, it's Grandpa."

"Hi," Yugi said, knowing exactly why Grandpa had called.

There was a short silence. "Yugi, you were supposed to call me an hour ago!" Grandpa said. "Really, I thought something had happened to you."

Despite his grandfather's well-placed concern, Yugi felt himself getting exasperated. It had _only _been thirty minutes. "I'm sorry, Grandpa," Yugi apologized. "I guess time got away from me."

Grandpa asked the usual questions: how was everything; who had come over; did the alarm ever go off; did you get to school; are you all right.

Yugi gave the usual answers: fine; Joey, Tea, Tristan, and Serenity; no; no school on Sunday; perfectly fine in every way. They chatted some more, and then Grandpa hung up.

As soon as Yugi was off the phone Yami spoke. "Yugi, you lied."

Yugi turned to see a transparent Yami behind him. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"You said not one word about the three attempts on your life."

"I had good reason," Yugi argued. "First, he wouldn't really understand, second, I'm not injured, third, why worry him when he can't come back and see about it? Besides, I can handle this without adult supervision."

The last sentence Yugi hadn't really meant to say. He wanted to take it back as soon as he said it. He immediately saw Yami's chastising look cross his face.

"'Without adult supervision'? Yugi, this isn't something frivolous like staying out past curfew or breaking something. Someone is trying to _murder _you. You shouldn't take it so lightly."

"I'm not!" Yugi snapped.

Yami's thin eyebrows flew up. "Did I offend you in some manner?" he asked with obvious sarcasm.

Yami was right. Yugi was overreacting at Yami's reprimand. Yugi sighed and sank down on the couch. "You're right. I'm sorry. I just wanted a chance to show how responsible I am, and now all this has to happen! I mean, it's scary!"

Yami sat next to Yugi on the couch. "I know it's scary. It's even worse for me, since I'm supposed to protect you and I barely managed to save you those two times. But we cannot give in to fear. Whoever is after you, that's what they want. They want you to become afraid, to feel like every shadow is attacking you, thus making you easy to kill."

Yugi shivered when Yami said kill. Someone was out there, deliberately trying to take away his life. It was a not too pleasant thought.

He was surprised when Yami said, "Yugi, I'm sorry."

Yugi looked up at him in surprise. Yami continued. "I shouldn't have brought those kinds of things to light. Especially since you're about to go to bed. You might have another nightmare."

"Oh I won't," Yugi assured with a smile. "Really."

In the next half-hour, he changed into pajamas, brushed his teeth, and checked all the locks. Then he went to bed.

Yami stayed awake, walking through the house. He rarely needed to sleep, so he spent most of his time now watching over Yugi. His mind was on disturbing thoughts as he walked around the house, periodically checking locks again and again. What if—perhaps—the next time this mystery person struck, he was not able to help Yugi in time? What if they accidentally let their guard down for just an instant, and then it all came crashing down? Was it possible to keep Yugi safe long enough until they could stop this madness?

Yami was so busy thinking scary thoughts that he bumped into a wall. Of course, he didn't feel any pain. He just stopped, looked up at it, and turned around.

Just in time to see something dark rush up the stairs silently.

Yami stared, then immediately made for the stairs. He ran up them. When he got to the top, he saw the dark figure entering Yugi's room.

A few seconds later, Yami appeared in Yugi's room. The dark figure was over beside the bed. It was holding something in its raised hand.

Suddenly, Yugi's eyes flew open. Immediately his arms shot out and shoved the figure hard. The figure slammed into a wall, its long hair falling into its face.

Yami dashed to the bed. "Yugi, are you all right?" he asked worriedly.

Yugi nodded, although his face was pale. "I'm fine." Both their heads turned to the dark figure that was slowly rising. The figure came into the moonlight shining from Yugi's window.

Yami's eyes widened. Yugi's face got paler.

Serenity stared at them with a confused and scared expression on her face. "What-what am I _doing _here?" she asked.

"I think we all know," Yami replied, for the moment making himself partially visible to Serenity. Yugi could only stare at the baseball bat clutched in her right hand.

Serenity bit her lip. "You mean—you think I got taken over?"

"That's exactly what I think," Yami replied acidly.

"Yami, calm down," Yugi said, beginning to get a little control over his fear. "It's not Serenity's fault."

Yami sighed. But he did stop glaring at Joey's sister.

Then, there was a laugh. An evil laugh. Three heads looked around to find the laugher.

There was another dark figure standing in the doorway. Yami tensed, sensing evil coming from the figure. Yugi bit his lip and tightened his hold on his covers. Serenity simply stared.

"Greetings, everyone," a low voice said. All three were shocked to hear the voice of a teenage girl. "I'm sorry if I startled you, but unfortunately for you, that's the least of your worries. Yugi, this would make four attempts on your life by your friends, now wouldn't it? And before you protest that it wasn't them, just save your breath. I already know that. And I'm warning you. This lucky getting away of yours won't last forever. Trust me, eventually you'll find out what this is all about. Then you will wish you'd never been born. All I can say is I hope you're ready to run for your life. Literally." Then the figure just magically vanished.

"What…" Yugi seemed to be speechless. "What…who…how…"

Serenity looked scared. "If you don't mind, I'm going to call Joey to come and get me," she said to Yami.

Yami waved in the direction of the door. "Go ahead."

Serenity left. Yami turned to Yugi, who was visibly shaken, and said nothing once again.

But his eyes said it all. Yugi, even though he was still scared, took one glance into Yami's large purple eyes and saw a glimmer of familiarity.

Yami already knew who it was.

END CHAPTER

Me: I—

Toli: AHEM.

Me: I mean, _we _hope you enjoyed that chapter.

Toli: Sit tight for the next chapter!

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 8…Yugi tries to get Yami to fess up about what he knows, and a little more to the villain's story is revealed…**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Toli: Welcome! Let's begin. First we shall respond to **Krista123**. Why thank you! (bows) I am the creepiness master here, so I take your words as a great compliment to my abilites. If you must know how our bad girl is controlling minds...well, I can't tell you. Instead, read on and you'll find out!

Second response is to **Millenniumgrl126**. You can't tell me you were sitting there for a week! But if you were, well, thanks for the dedication! Although it's a little...scary to think you sat there that whole time, I appreciate how far you're willing to go to see the next chapter.

Mena: Can I interject?

Toli: NO. Next is **SilverTiger-GoldenPhoenix**, someone who has been there since the beginning. You make me so happy! Anyway, thank you very much for enjoying this story. And Kira, one word of advice. If you truly want to glue your eyes to the screen, you need paste. It works a lot better than hot glue. Mena knows from experience.

Mena: What?

Toli: NEXT. To our next reviewer, **Silver Moon Phoenix**. When will the girl appear? Well, she just did. And I am STILL not telling anyone how she controls the minds of Yugi's friends. You will have to find out for yourself! And as for Yugi getting killed...well...you might be surprised at what happens. And we're all fans of Yugi. At least, I am.

Mena: May I please--

Toli: No you may not. Next we have **spiecas**. Hi, and welcome to the story! Thank you for reviewing so nicely. We appreciate it. At least, _I_ do.

Mena: You didn't--

Toli: Anyhow, next up is **Aya**. Aww, she thinks it's cute...how sweet. Yugi nearly getting murdered four times is so cute! Anyway, thank you very much for the nice review. I do enjoy those things! And BEFORE MENA SAYS ANYTHING ELSE...

Mena: What?

Toli: --we will respond to **Dagger Maxwell**. Yes. My thoughts exactly. Every time I watched an episode with Tristan in it, I resisted the urge to stab the screen. I think we're both mentally challenged in this department. But oh well, it's hard to be a fan without being insane!

Mena: Hard, but not impossible.

Toli: Our next response goes out to **DMoS13**. Tell Torru he's welcome to fix the roof on my house as well. Hurricane Frances tore part of it off. I am sunbathing in my living room as we speak!

Mena: Please please please let me respond to this one!

Toli: Whatever.

Mena: Okay! Our final response goes out to **StubsMcGimp**. Hi! Yes! Let all the sugar freaks unite and overthrow carb counters! (pumps fist and hits screen) DON'T LET THE SYSTEM TEAR YOU DOWN!

Toli: If the system doesn't tear you down, Mena. I _will_. Will you stop buying those five-pound bags of sugar and eating spoonfuls like some snack? And will you please throw away your sugar packets stash? And stop going to coffee-drinking parties just to consume the sugar cubes?

Mena: How dare you tell all of my business!

Toli: Whatever again. Anyway, to all reviewers, thank you very much. (opens box) Everybody can pick up a full-color life-sized poster of their favorite character. Limit one per personality.

Mena: We'll see you!


	9. EIGHT: The Secrets

Mena: Hi everyone!!

Toli: We're really REALLY sorry we haven't updated in so long.

Mena: Hurricane Jeanne broke our computer! And we had to get a new one!

Toli: And then I accidentally deleted the next three chapters, so I had to rewrite them. But thanks for tuning in! And remember--

Mena: Can't _I _do the disclaimer just once? Pleeeease?

Toli: Fine, whatever!

Mena: Yay! We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!

Toli -.-; How unoriginal…

CHAPTER EIGHT: THE SECRETS

Yugi didn't sleep. He couldn't sleep. He had gotten about two hours of sleep total by the time he had to wake up for school.

But he was already awake. Thoughts were racing through his mind at full speed as he slowly rose and got off the bed.

How close had he come to being killed last night? If he hadn't already been on the edge, already subconsciously listening for any strange sounds, what might have happened? Would he get away the next time? Could he trust his friends not to murder him during class?

Who was the girl at the door? What right did she have to use Yugi's friends against him? What gave her the authority to try and kill him? Did Yami really know the girl already? If he did, why didn't he say so? Where did that girl get the power to control Yugi's friends' bodies? Did she have a Millennium Item or something?

Should he let Grandpa know? Was it safe to stay home alone any longer? What was Yami hiding? Why did that girl want to kill him?

Would he make it out alive??

"Yugi?!"

Yugi slammed right into the wall. He had been concentrating so hardly on his thoughts that he hadn't noticed he was aimed for the wall instead of the open door. He rubbed his now sore nose and turned.

Yami, transparent, was standing behind him. He had been on the verge of warning Yugi where he was headed when the teen reached his destination. Yugi turned to him and removed his hand from his nose. His nose was slowly turning red. Yami tried to hide a grin, but couldn't keep from smiling a little.

"Watch out for the wall," he said.

"Very funny," Yugi said, smiling back. Then Yami felt a sharp pang, and Yugi's smile disappeared like it had never been there. "I'm going to take a shower," he mumbled, turning and leaving the room.

Yami frowned. What had Yugi thought of that had dampened his mood? Yami almost laughed at the stupidity of the question. Considering the circumstances, it could have been a number of things.

But why did he have the feeling it was something involving himself?

SOMEWHERE ELSE…

She stared at the crystal that had allowed her to see Yugi wherever he was. How was it that she had failed—four times? Even though she truly wanted the pleasure of Yugi's death to herself, it would be even better if he was just dead. At any moment, she could take control of anyone and use him or her to kill him. But using his friends seemed…worse in a good way.

Resting her chin on one hand, she thought back to last night when she had actually ventured out to see Yugi die. Of course, somehow he suddenly arose and stopped Serenity before she could even hit him once. Maybe she had underestimated his ability to dodge death. No one was that good.

"It's only because he has that spirit to help him," she thought aloud. "Killing has never been this hard for me. If I could get rid of…no, that wouldn't work either."

She sighed and leaned back in her chair. Closing her eyes, she gave up thoughts of her next victim for the moment. Almost automatically, memories of the past came tumbling in.

"Nona? Nona, where are you?"

Nona poked her head out from the tree and saw Sara standing under her. "I'm not doing anything," she said quickly.

Sara smiled. "You're not in trouble, silly," she said. "I just want to play with you!"

"Really?" Nona asked

Sara nodded. Believing the girl, Nona pulled herself out of the tree hole she was hiding in and climbed down.

_ Nona's eyes snapped open._

"I don't believe this!" she wailed. "I cannot let the past come catching up to me now. I'm too close. I only have one person left—Yugi. And he won't get away from me next time." She narrowed her eyes dangerously. "I'll see to it. Myself."

YUGI'S HOUSE

"You know her, don't you?"

Yami looked up, surprised. Yugi hadn't spoken a word since he dashed off to take his shower. He hadn't said anything when he was dressing, eating breakfast, brushing his teeth, or getting his supplies. Now he was about to walk out the door, with Yami dutifully following, when he spoke.

"Know who?" Yami asked.

"That—that—that _girl_," Yugi said.

Yami looked around. "What girl?" he asked.

"The attempted murderer!" Yugi yelled. Two people jogging by looked at him curiously then jogged on.

"What do you mean?" Yami asked.

Yugi looked upset. "When…_she _came to the house and said all that stuff to me. I looked at you, and you looked like you knew her. Who was she?'

Yami immediately blocked the mind-link. He didn't want Yugi knowing how he was feeling at the moment. "Yugi, you must believe me. I don't know who she is," he said.

Yugi looked kind of upset still. He bit his lip, then said, "Okay, I believe you."

Yami wondered what Yugi was feeling at the moment, but he didn't know, because Yugi had blocked his side of the mind-link as well.

END CHAPTER

Mena: Another success! Right?

Toli: We're so glad you like the story! Hay, reviewers!! (waves at nice reviewers)

Mena: Please come back for our next chapter!

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 9…Yugi has to go home because he's sick, but he never makes it, and no one knows where he is…**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Mena: It's that time yet again! (weird game show music plays) And we have a _lot _of work to do! Now, first up is **StubsMcGimp** and her pal Damion. Hi guys! (waves) Yes, lots of luck. Maybe you're right. Maybe I should try that too. Feel free to take the rest of the posters, since nobody wants them. And watch those pants! It hurts when you fall!

Toli: Yes it does. Anyway, next is **Silver Moon Phoenix**. You know, that hurricane/.murderer thing makes sense...hmm...anyway, congratulations dodging the hurricanes. I wish we were as lucky. We love surprising you, by the way!

Mena: Next we have **SilverTiger-Golden Phoenix**. Hi! Thank you very much for reviewing! KIRA! BEFORE YOU DO ANYTHING! If you want the paste to stick better than hot glue, microwave it for twelve seconds in the microwave and add three drops of milk!

Toli: Why are you telling her this?

Mena: I dunno! Next up is **Millenniumgrl126**. Is the suspense getting to you? Is it? Is it? And don't let Killer kill our villian! There's too much more we need her for!

Toli: All right, our next response is for **DMoS13**. Hi, dude! Hi Torru! Let Torru stay awhile. I want to talk to him later.

Mena: (suspicious) About?

Toli: Shut up. Anyway, next is **Krista123**. Okay, okay, put the Millennium...uh...Toilet down! We updated already! And don't worry, before the story is over, the villian's past and motives shall be revealed!

Mena: Okay, my turn. Hi, **Erckie**! Hi Kyrie! Thank you veeeery much! Yur review is totally appreciated! And...Bakura? (starts laughing maniacally) Bakura! He's in the next chapter! Or at least Ryou is...maybe we can add a little jab from naughty Bakura.

Toli: All right, next up is **Pharaoh Star Yami**. Hi! Welcome! Thank you for the comment. You know, I never thought of Yami as hot, but he is, you know! He's HOT!

Mena: Here we go. (puts face in hand and shakes head)

Toli: Okay, okay, okay. Last but definitely not least, **Elizabeth Aiken**! Welcome! Please tune in next time! Your good reviews are quite welcome and really appreciated!

Mena: Aiken, huh? Any relation to Clay?


	10. NINE: The Kidnapping

Toli: I would have updated sooner if it weren't for three things. 1: I got Writer's Block. 2: My Writer's Block dissolved--in the middle of my groundation--darn those D's. 3: I had to take care of poor sickly Mena. She has a cold. But, I'm back now! Anybody who thinks we own Yu-Gi-Oh is clueless at the moment. And before we start, we have a few guest appearances in here, although only one was requested. A little surprise for a few of our faithful reviewers. Now, here's the next chapter!

**CHAPTER NINE: THE KIDNAPPING**

Tea gently tapped Yugi on the shoulder. He didn't stir. So she tried lobbing an eraser at him. That woke him up.

Tea glanced up front to see if the teacher noticed Yugi's head down on his desk. Fortunately, she hadn't. Tea slid her arms back into her lap and watched Yugi out of the corner of her eye.

Yugi looked so sleepy. She guessed that he hadn't gotten much sleep after what had happened to him last night, which both Serenity and Joey had told her about before school started. Right now Yugi was leaning on both hands and his eyes were half closed.

Tea hoped he was all right.

Yugi barely heard the teacher talking. Once again, more thoughts were running through his mind. When he had asked Yami about the girl, Yami had cut off the mind link. Why? What was he hiding? Yugi was almost glad Yami had decided to stay home, because he wasn't sure he wanted to be around the spirit at the moment.

Suddenly, without any warning at all, not even a funny feeling, Yugi threw up. Luckily the chair in front of him was empty, so nobody got hit with puke.

Immediately several girls screamed as if a huge monster had just come in and eaten someone. A couple of kids got up on their chairs like the floor was now contagious. While pandemonium arose, Yugi slumped backwards into his chair, his eyes closed.

Tea jumped out of her chair and went to Yugi. "Yugi? Are you all right?" she cried.

Yugi didn't respond.

"All right, class, settle down!" the teacher was saying over the screaming and laughter. "Boys, off the desks, please. Luna, could you go get the janitor?"

"Yes ma'am," the girl next to Tea said, jumping from her seat and heading for the door quickly.

Tea and Ryou, who was in the same class, escorted Yugi to the nurse while Luna ran off to get the janitor.

"That was so spontaneous," Ryou said as they waited outside the nurse's for a report on Yugi. "What do you think prompted his regurgitation?"

Tea sighed. "I think I might know." She explained to Ryou everything that had been happening. When she finished, he looked perplexed. "So you think that stress caused him to throw up?"

"I don't know," Tea said. "I just hope he'll be all right."

Suddenly, without any warning, Bakura's transparent form appeared next to them. "So, someone's trying to murder the Pharaoh's runt, eh? Not a bad idea. Maybe, after he's dead..."

"Back where you belong," Ryou said with an uncharacteristic growl as he pulled the Millennium Ring out of his backpack.

"You never let me see the outside world anymore," Bakura complained. "What are you afraid of? It's not like I can _do_ anything to anyone in this state, as much as I would like to--"

"You heard me," Ryou said. The Millennium Puzzle glowed briefly, and Bakura's form disappeared. "I've really got to find some way to keep him under wraps," Ryou sighed.

Just then the nurse came out. Behind her was Yugi, who still looked pretty bad.

"I'm sending him home," the nurse told Tea and Ryou. "I'd suggest one or both of you escort him there in case he has another attack."

"Any idea what caused it?" Ryou asked.

"It could be a number of things," the nurse said. "Spoiled lunch food--which seems to be the best explanation--illness, stress..."

Ryou offered to escort Yugi home. Tea had to go back to class. She watched over her shoulder as the two boys left the school and headed for Yugi's house.

**AFTER SCHOOL**

The four friends ran down the street. After Tea had related the incident to Joey, Tristan, and Serenity, they had all been eager to go to Yugi's after school and check on him. And, even though none of them would say it, they were a little worried that Ryou would go psycho and try to toss Yugi out of a window or something.

They made it to Yugi's house in record time. Tea knocked on the door and rang the doorbell at the same time. They waited rather impatiently.

Joey frowned. "Ya know, it looks kinda dark in there. I mean, I know da store'd be closed, but I didn' see any light in any windows."

"That's strange," Tristan said.

"Maybe he's taking a nap," Serenity suggested.

Tea shook her head. "Even so, I know Ryou wouldn't leave until he was certain Yugi would be all right, and he'd have a light on. I don't think anyone's here."

"Well, I'm pretty sure they didn' go onna shoppin' spree!" Joey exclaimed.

"Let's just go to Tristan's house and call here from there," Serenity said.

Everyone agreed. They turned to leave.

"What da--?!" Joey could barely speak.

"Ryou?!?! What _happened _to you, man?" Tristan exclaimed.

Ryou was suddenly behind them. He looked like he'd been in a fight with 16 people. His left eye was bruised, his school uniform was torn and dirty, cuts and scrapes showing through tears, and he was clutching his right arm with a sore red left hand. Two people, a guy and girl, wearing the school uniforms, were holding him up on either side.

"We got to...call police," Ryou breathed, looking ready to topple. "A man...stopped us. He...beat me up and...Yugi's gone..."

"What are you sayin', man?" Joey yelled.

"Yugi's been kidnapped," Ryou said. "The man...pulled over...he just grabbed Yugi...and threw him in the truck...I tried to stop him...he was too strong."

"We saw this kid at the tail end of his run-in with Burly Truck Dude," the guy said.

"We also saw Burly Truck Dude toss somebody in his truck and drive off," the girl added.

"Oh no!" Tea cried. She was deathly pale.

Tristan pulled Ryou up on his back, and they started running.

"Thank you guys so much for finding Ryou," Tea said to the two people as they went.

"No problem," the girl said. "Torru here was the first one to spot them."

Torru nodded. "We wouldn't have noticed if Kira hadn't dropped all her stuff on the sidewalk, though."

"Let's not worry about dat! Let's just get Ryou to da hospital!" Joey exclaimed. "And somebody call da cops!"

**ELSEWHERE...**

Her laughter was loud and satisfied. The stupid idiots. Not even the best police force could find Yugi now. He wasn't in reach anymore. Her idea to take over someone's mind and have them kidnap Yugi, right from under his stupid friends' noses, had been foolproof. And it worked. Now Yugi was at her mercy, hidden away from any possible rescue by her own twisted magic.

"Why didn't I think of this before?" she thought aloud. "It's going to be so much easier to get rid of him now! Now that no one can interfere!"

Then she stopped. "No one except...stupid! Why didn't I think to have that man toss the Millennium Puzzle? I'll have to dispose of it myself."

She stood up. Turning, she headed for an open doorway to her right at a brisk pace. She should hurry. She was too close to success to mess up now.

**END CHAPTER**

Toli: Whew! Chapter 9's done! Don't forget to review because we will respond! See you next time!

**NEXT IN CHAPTER TEN...The whole story about the villain is finally revealed, and Yugi finds out why he's going to be murdered...**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Toli: I hate doing this by myself.

Mena: (stuffy voice) You're not by yourself! (blows nose)

Toli: Oh. You finally decided to join us. Anyway, here we go! (game show music plays) Yeah, it's that time again. Our first response goes out to **DMoS13**. Hi guys! I don't want anything bad to happen to Yugi either, but the show must go on! And thanks for sticking around, Torru. We have business.

Mena: (suspicious) About?

Toli: Shut up. The next response is to **Ayamari**. Welcome! I wish I could tell you why someone wants to kill Yugi, but not yet. All will be revealed in our next chapter, however!

Mena: (blows nose) I bet that's an incentive to stick around. Anyway, next up is **Silver Moon Phoenix**. And Luna the Meanie.

Toli: She's not a meanie, she just has different preferences for the ending of this story.

Mena: If you say so. I feel sorry for SMP. Luna is a weird yami.

Toli: Like a certain someone else you just decided to make up in your spare time, no?

Mena: (angry) YOU KEEP LEXIE OUT OF THIS!

Toli: We're not having _three_ people doing this, Mena. Anyway. Next we'll respond to **Millenniumgrl126**. Well, you're certainly attentive. You're right about the mystery murderer, but that's all I can say right now. And you might be surprised about how Yami's connected to her. The way this story ends may--MAY, I don't want to get carried away--prompt a sequel.

Mena: And throw Killer in a dungeon if you have to. We need our bad girl for another few chapters! (stops to blow nose) All right, now we reply to** Erckie **and Kyrie. Hey guys! You know, Sugar Highs aren't that bad of a thing...

Toli: Yes, if the victim of Sugar High is strapped in the hug jacket and locked in the boingy room.

Mena: I don't know what those are.

Toli: (to Erckie and Kyrie) She doesn't spaz if I don't say "straight jacket" and "padded cell". Okay, next we have **SilverTiger-GoldenPhoenix**, which Mena will help me with bnecause _this mess_ is _her fault_.

Mena: (hands up) Hey, I didn't know Kira couldn't operate a microwave!

Toli: You shouldn't have given her the paste recipe!

Mena: (ignoring Toli) I wonder what would have happened if she had gotten to the milk part? (giggles and then blows nose)

Toli: Not funny. ST-GP and Kira could be permanently stuck to the wall.

Mena: Oh. Right. (becomes serious) Next time, Kira, ask ST-GP to push the buttons for you.

Toli: Or better yet, forget glueing your face to the screen!

Mena: You ruin everything!

Toli: That's my job. Next is the response to **dragon shadows**. Hey, and welcome! We appreciate your nice review very much! And as to your question, Mena and I are twin sisters. I'm three minutes older, though sometimes it seems like three years. Unfortunately, Mena has found herself some obscure Millennium Item in the kitchen and is planning to release its spirit on us sane people.

Mena: You ruined the surprise.

Toli: Once again, my job. Next we'll respond to **StubsMcGimp**. Hi! (returns returned wave) It's nice to see you and Damion again.

Mena: Make sure you hang up ALL those posters! (blows nose) And it might not be a bad idea to consume less sugar. More people will like you. And don't worry, Damion, I'll talk to Lexie about it. She claims to have a mind vacuum and can remove anything from someone's mind.

Toli: That's why she isn't joining us. She's trouble.

Mena: She's sweet!

Toli: She trouble. And _blue_.

Mena: So? Anyway, here's the response to **Elizabeth Aiken**. What bad luck! I can't imagine how many people must ask you if you're related to Clay Aiken. Don't worry, I feel your pain. Someone once asked me if I was related to Maximillian Pegasus. Just because I dyed my hair white once...

Toli: She didn't ask all that. I like your copyrighted phrase. Things like that are cool! Hope you hang around until next time!

Mena: (blows nose) Next we'll be talking to **Krista123**. Yes! You put the Toilet away! I'm so happy I'll live till Chapter...whichever one the next one is! Thank you! Yes! We're happy! Come back next time!

Toli: Stop copying her.

Mena: What! Are! You! Talking! About?!

Toii: Never mind. Anyway, our final response goes out to** Julianna**. Welcome to the story! We're glad you've enjoyed it so far. We hope to continue to enjoy it!

Mena: And that goes double for everyone else!

Toli: Quick shout out to **SilverTiger-GoldenPhoenix**, **DMoS13**, and **Silver Moon Phoenix**. We hope you noticed the weird little treat Mena ordered me to add to this chapter. Your friend/personality/yami/hikari/brother/sister/whatever was well appreciated in the chapter. We hope to see you next time.

Mena: (blows nose all over screen)

Toli _STOP IT_! (grabs conveniently placed baseball bat)


	11. TEN: The Failure

Me: Hi everybody! I'm alive and well now, so we can move on! And for all you impatient peopel who were bugging my sister, YES IT IS TIME! THE VILLIAIN'S STORY AND MOTIVE--FINALLY REVEALED!

Toli: Enjoy #10!! WDOY (We Don't Own Yu-Gi-Oh)

* * *

CHAPTER TEN: THE FAILURE

Yugi awoke suddenly, like someone had just shaken him. He stared at the darkness surrounding him. He was lying on a cold, hard floor.

"Hello?" Yugi called out weakly. "Is…anyone there?" He tried to get up, but his body felt incredibly heavy. So he just laid there. "Hello?" he tried again.

The only reply was his own empty-sounding echo.

Yugi laid there in the darkness, unsure what to do. He wanted to get up, but for some reason he felt too heavy to get up. The darkness seemed to press in on him.

And something was missing.

Yugi realized with a start. The Millennium Puzzle! It was gone from around his neck! Had he dropped it? Was it taken away?

"You're awake," a voice spoke suddenly from the darkness. Yugi looked around, hoping to see who it was. Off to the left, a figure was barely noticeable through the thick blackness.

"Who are you?" Yugi called out.

"Nobody," the voice replied. "Nobody—just like you'll soon be. We're both going to be nobodies now."

Yugi began to get scared. "What…do you mean? I'm not nobody. I have a name."

"Yes, a name. And a family. And friends! And people who _love you_!" the voice got louder and shriller with every sentence. "You know that you have people who care, people who think you're a great person. You and your whole stupid family, I bet! You're the last one, you know."

Yugi was confused now. "The last one? The last what?"

"The last person left!" the voice yelled. "The last person I have to kill before my mission is complete."

Yugi was scared. "What mission? Please, tell me."

There was laughter, but it didn't sound evil.

"My mission in life. The only thing I have to live for. Either you die-or I die. It's as simple as that. Confused? I suppose I could explain since you won't be alive much longer.

"My name is Nona. I'm the same age you are. If I were a normal person, I'd be going to school, worrying about what boys think of me, and wondering if I'll flunk the next math test. But I'm not a normal person."

She sat down crosslegged next to him, as if they were having some regular conversation. "I get the feeling that Yami--the man from your Puzzle--has been lying to you about me, hasn't he?"

"What do you mean?" Yugi asked. "Does he know you?"

"In a way," Nona said. "I once had the Millennium Puzzle in my possession." She paused to let Yugi gasp. "It's true. I found it in Egypt when I was lost one night. It fascinated me. I took it home and tried to solve it. I didn't come close." She looked disgusted. "But I determined to solve its mystery. I knew there was something special about it, simply by holding a piece in my hand.

"My family was into Ancient Egyptian magic. In fact, it was what my father studied as a profession. I secretly studied Dad's old books to try and find a way to unlock the secrets of the Puzzle. I was afraid to show it to my father, because I thought he would take it away and try to figure it out, and I wanted to do that myself. Besides, he was abusive. Even if he didn't want to study it, he would take it away to be mean.  So I secretly researched, and I finally found something about the Puzzle. It seemed the only known way to unlock its secrest was to solve it. As I had no luck with that, I decided to use the magical equivalent of dynamite--spells assumed to reveal hidden powers in anything.

"I tried to use one on the portal, but I made an error, and instead of unlocking the secrets, I made contact with the spirit inside."

Yugi gasped again. "No way!" he said. "You talked to Yami?"

"Yes I did," Nona said. "But it proved to be fatal. The spell I mangled actually planted a curse upon me. Unless I destroyed every living owner of the Millennium Puzzle, I was doomed to die. My parents found out by accident and threw me out of the house. I would die a miserable death, unless I satiated the appetite of the curse upon me.

"So I began my weary journey. I would come across people in the street and ask them if they had ever owned the Millennium Puzzle, which I took with me. I never found anyone in Egypt. So I decided to travel. I became a thief to buy myself plane tickets and flew many places. Twice I actually found former owners of the Millennium Puzzle. Once I simply resorted to murder and had to flee the country. I decided to find a better way to get rid of my victims. So I returned to my family's home in secret, and stole one of my father's magic books. I memorized all the spells I needed in the book and disposed of it. One was the spell I use to control people. Another was a spell I used to travel, so I wouldn't have to steal money for plane tickets. I returned to where I found my second victim and used my newly acquired abilities to dispose of him.

"On my way to a new place to make a new life for myself, I was attacked by a ridiculous band of robbers looking for easy money. They escaped with the Puzzle and no doubt sold it to someone. I realized my current predicament, and desperately searched for the Puzzle, hoping to retrieve it before it was claimed by someone else. I tracked down the bandits and, using my magic, forced them to tell me what they had donev with the Puzzle. They said they had sold it to some guy flying to Egypt. Knowing that they had stolen and briefly owned the Puzzle, I killed them all and then headed back to Egypt to reclaim the Puzzle.

"When I made it, the man had already given it to your grandfather. Understand, now, that this is a time frame of about three years. I killed the man and went after your grandfather, but I lost him. I caught back up with him when he traveled back to America. I would have killed him, except for I had lost him again, and now that he had given you the Puzzle, he hadn't had it for a long enough time to be considered its owner, and besides, he had brought it back for you. I figured this all out when I finally found him again, one year later. When I found out you had the Puzzle, and you _completed_ it, I knew this was where my mission would end. With you. Once you are gone, I will also depart from this world."

"What do you mean?" Yugi said, shivering.

"I mean that I have dragged out this curse too long. It's too late for me. All I can do now is kill you, and then commit suicide before the curse destroys me."

"But if it's too late, why kill me at all?" Yugi asked as bravely as he could.

"Because I have come too far and done too much to simply let you go!" Nona snapped, standing up abruptly. Then she seemed to gain control of herself. "I have been going along for the better part of three years, killing so I could live. Now you're all that's left. I pity you for not understanding what danger you put yourself in when you accepted this cursed Puzzle--" shed held the Puzzle up "from your ignorant grandfather."

Yugi could't speak. He was too shocked.

"So now you know everything about me and why you must die. I may seem cold-blooded and evil, but your opinion doesn't sway me at all. All I know is, you're going to die and that is all there is to think about."

Yugi shivered. Her story was sad in a way, but she still didn't have the right to kill. All the innocent people she had murdered, just to save herself. It was terrible. He was very scared. "Isn't there _anything_ I can do to convince you to let me live?" he pleaded.

Nona shook her dark head. "No. You're my victim, and you're not going to live. You can't plead or negotiate your way out of the inevitable, Yugi Moto." She retreated into the shadows with three words.

"I'll be back."

_It's true, _Nona thought to herself as she left Yugi on the floor in the room. _I am a cold-blooded murderer. I was the only one. Seif, only you understood me. Even though Lavell tried, she never understood me like you. _She held the Puzzle to her chest. _I wish you both were here with me now. We were kindred spirits, a like kind. We were **friends**. _

A solitary tear rolled down her cheek. _But even the death of that boy could never bring you back. This Puzzle is useless. I don't want it. I'll leave it--and the spirit--with his body, and they can torment each other in the next life. But I'll look for you, and maybe we'll all meet up in the next life, and we can be a circle of friends again.

* * *

_

**END CHAPTER**

Me: Chapter complete!

Toli: Did you like?

Me: We hope so! See you next time, okay?**NEXT IN CHAPTER 11…Time is running out for Yugi, and his friends still have no clue where he is. But Yami might be able to help…**

**REVIEW RESPONSES**

Mena: It's that time again!

Toli: Again?

Mena: Yes, because we are grateful for the support!

Toli: (snaps to the alert) Oh! Right! Right! Okay, here we go! (game show music plays) Okey dokeeeee, now who's first? Ah, yes. **Elizabeth Aiken!** Thank you for said applause! (bows) Now you why Yugi was murdered, as does everyone else.

Mena: Don't you worry, Elizabeth, even if you're not related to the good-looking, great-voiced idolized Clay Aiken, we still love you!

Toli: O.o; Um, yes, of course. Okay! Next is **Millenniumgrl126.** Yes, you made a right 'inference'. Boy you're smart! I hope Killer doesn't do what her name implies after reading this chapter. Mena and I have had enough death threats made on our lives by a certain frustrated parent...

Mena: Please! Give Killer some sleeping pills! (rifles in purse and spills out tons of multicolored pills before bringing up two white ones) We want our lives!

Toli: All right, next on the list is **Silver Moon Phoenix **and Luna. Hi guys! It seems as though Luna is--happy?--she achieved an appearance in the last chapter. Yes, she's weird. Almost as weird as this Lexie Mena keeps raving about. Trapped in something called a Millennium Plate...hmm, never heard of it. Anyway, don't let Luna kill you, okay?

Mena: You can have sleeping pills for Luna! (knocks more pills out of purse before acquiring sleeping ones)

Toli: Okay, next is** dragon shadows**--

Mena: (butts in) Hi! Guess what! I found the Millennium Plate in the kitchen! Hidden in the flatware drawer! I'm going to let out the spirit next chapter for proctection!

Toli: You are so annoying sometimes!

Mena: (pouts) (releases puppy dog eyes)

Toli: (spits words) Crap. (turns away) Anyway, our next response is for **Erckie**, who actually gave us a review telling us to hurry up. We're sorry! It's here and gone, and here's another! Don't shoot!

Mena: They didn't make threats, Toli. (sighs) Oh, the memories...

Toli: Oh. Right. Next up is** Ayamari. **Hey! Don't worry, as we said above, it was all explained in this chapter! You can relax now! And don't forget to come back!

Mena: Yes! You must return!

Toli: Okay, next is** DMoS13** and Torru. Hey, guys. Hope Torru liked his surprise part. Torru, good to see ya. I heard you can fix stuff well.

Mena: (butts in again) She wants you to mend her broken heart.

Toli: (starts beating Mena over the head with blow-up baseball bat) SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!!

Mena: (defnding with convenient blow-up shield) She has an ex-boyfriend. Anyway! Next up is **SilverTiger-GoldenPhoenix. **Hi! Hi Kira! Kira, I have advice. Next time, don't glue your face to the screen. Use tape instead!

Toli: (shoves Mena out of the way) And before she gives you any MORE cockamamie ideas, let me tell you we're sorry you got called the lizard ladies. That's wrong. I hope you hair looks okay, ST-GP. And I'll buy you a new microwave next chapter, promise. Now, let's move on.

Mena: You hurt me! (whimpers like a wounded puppy)

Toli: Cut it out, whiny. Next up is** StubsMcGimp.** Hi, Stubs! (returns returned returned returned wave) Good to see your hand still works! The cure for the common cold, eh? How about the cure for the common sugar high?

Mena: Yes, Darrion. It's true! I discovered a power of the Millennium Plate is the ability to suck anything unwanted from a person's mind! Lexie calls it the Mind Vacuum! Don't worry, once I unleahs her next chapter, she'll get right on it, promise! And...thanks for the kiss! (blushes and giggles and holds hand to face all at once)

Toli: Nope, sorry. Six P.M. on Dec. 13 of every year is Mom and Dad's official "we can't meet anyone who kissed our daughter(s) on impulse" day. How about Dec 14, same time?

Mena: Yeah, think about it! Anyway, our next response is for **Shy**. Hi and welcome to the story! We are so glad to have you here! Please continue to join us; if you plan on leaving, I'm missing you already!

Toli: And last but most definitely not least, **Marshmellow13Dragon**. Hi and welcome! Thank you for your review. Hurry, jump in the shower--whenever you need to get in, somehow the person inside always decides to take a longer and hotter shower just TO TICK YOU OFF (glares at Mena)

Mena: What? That was ONE time!


	12. ELEVEN: The Murder

Me: Welcome back everybody! We hope the story's exciting enough for you.

Toli: It just better be, a lot of this is me!

Me: Here's the next chapter!

Toli: WDOY…

* * *

**CHAPTER ELEVEN: THE MURDER**

Nona walked into her own room and tossed the Millennium Puzzle into a corner. She smiled, thinking of how close she was to triumph. It almost seemed unbelievable.

"Here I am, at the brink of the end," she said aloud, "yet I feel like enjoying the moment. Oh, a few moments won't hurt me, or him, for now."

She stretched her arms over her head and plunked down in her chair. In thinking of success, however, she failed to see the half-transparent form slip through the wall silently.

* * *

_"Nona!" Lavell exclaimed with glee. "You're back!" She threw her arms around the dark-haired girl in a happy hug. "It's been so lonely without you!"_

_"Where have you been?" Seif asked, smiling as he approached._

_Nona smiled back. "Oh--around," she offered lamely, not wanting to tell them that she had been in another continent murdering._

_"Well, wherever 'around' is, I'm glad you're back here with us!" Lavell exclaimed, releasing her friend. "Next time you decide to run off, you'd better tell us so we can say goodbye!"_

_Seif was still smiling, but Nona could tell--just by looking at his disturbingly bright silver eyes--that he knew she was lying. He was always able to see right through her. And one of these days, she'd own up to what she was really doing when she suddenly left for weeks at a time. She knew her friends would still accept her. They were all close like that._

_Little did she know, she would never get the chance.

* * *

_

Yami ran down the long hall. He knew he didn't have much time. Yugi was on the brink of extermination, and he wasn't about to let his light die without a fight from the spirit. Using his link to Yugi to guide him, he kept going as fast as he could.

Finally he reached a dark room. He could sense that Yugi was in there. He went in. "Yugi?"

"Yami!" Yugi's voice cried out in the darkness. "Please, you have to help me!"

Yami slowly walked forward until he found Yugi on the floor. He could sense that an immobility spell had been cast over the teenager. It was a powerful one. _But I'm still going to break it, _Yami thought determinedly.

Yami knelt beside Yugi. "Are you all right?" he asked. "You haven't been harmed?"

Yugi shook his head. "No, not yet, but I can't get up, and Nona said she's coming back!You've got to help me get out of here!"

Yami nodded determinedly."Yugi, there's been a spell cast over you to keep you from getting up," he said. "I'm going to destroy it but it may take some time."

"Okay," Yugi said. He wasn't sure what Yami planned to do, but he trusted the spirit.

Yami had a determined look on his face. He closed his eyes, and theglowing eye appeared on his forehead, glowing brightly. Suddenly Yugi felt an immense pressure, like there was an entire house on top of him. It took him a little while to realize it was the spell being pulled off of him.

They both sat there, Yami still working, Yugi still waiting. Finally Yami opened his eyes, and the pressure lifted off of Yugi.

Yugi pushed himself up on his elbows, then his knees, and then his feet. His arms were kind of sore.

"Thanks, Yami!" Yugi said.

Yami smiled briefly, but then his face turned serious. "Now that you can move, you need to get out of—"

Before he could finish the sentence, he disappeared suddenly, in a flash of light.

"Yami?!" Yugi exclaimed. "Where did you go?"

Then Nona showed up again. In her left hand was most of the Millennium Puzzle. In her right was a piece she'd pulled off of it. She looked angry.

"Didn't I say that you weren't getting away?" she yelled. "You're only making me angrier. I was going to let you have a few more moments to live, but now I'm simply going to kill you right now." She dropped the Millennium Puzzle, and another piece fell off of it. She lifted her arms and stretched her hands out towards Yugi.

You have to move! Yugi yelled at himself. But he was rooted to the spot. That seemed to be happening a lot lately.

Nona's eyes were glowing red. Her hands were turning black. Yugi was still staring. He finally realized she had hit him with another immobility spell.

"I won't lie," Nona said. "This will hurt. This is what I like to call a finishing spell. It will make every organ in your body cease functioning, killing you in a matter of seconds while administering the extreme pain of interior malfunction and death."

"Don't do it," Yugi pleaded. "Please!"

Nona shook her head. "It's too late. For the both of us."

Then her hands changed from black to their original white. Yugi could feel wind rushing at him.

"No!" Yugi cried, realizing what was happening. As soon as he spoke, something slammed into him, stealing the rest of his air from his lungs.

It was worse than simply hurting.

It was a blinding sheet of burning, gnawing pain attacking him from the inside.

Yugi's vision darkened, and solid black spots appeared in front of his eyes. He couldn't hear, or speak, and after a few seconds, he couldn't see.

He faintly heard Nona say, "I was saving that particular spell for my last victim."

Where were his arms and legs? Had they been vaporized? Yugi felt like he was floating in space, feeling nothing except pain. He could barely hear Nona's laughter. Then something hit his head.

No...it was him. He had fallen on the floor. He felt like someone had somehow set a fire inside of him, and the flames were getting worse. As consciousness left him, he wondered if Yami was okay.

That was his last thought.

* * *

Pain.

Blinding pain.

He didn't know when was the last time he had had to feel it. He knew what was happening, and he knew he was powerless to stop it. He felt overwhelming anger at Nona as he heard his poor light scream. He stretched out a hand, as if to find him, but he knew it was too late. The link was already dying in his mind.

Faintly he heard a thought come to him from the other side of the rapidly closing link. _I hope you're all right, Yami._

He felt tears. Even in the midst of death, Yugi still cared more about others than himself. He didn't deserve to suffer; he _didn't_!

"_YUGI_!" Yami managed to scream before darkness closed in on his world.

And suddenly, it was over.

**END CHAPTER**

Me: Yes, cliffhanger. Hope you enjoyed!

Toli: We'll see you all next time!

NEXT IN CHAPTER 12…Yami, Tea, Joey and Tristan may have to learn to live in a world without Yugi, but what if he isn't really dead?

REVIEW RESPONSES

Mena: HOPE YOU HAD A HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Toli: O.O Uh, ow?

Mena: RESPOND TIME!!

Toli: Okay! First up is **Elizabeth Aiken**. Yeah, Mena loves everybody...it's a fact. Things may not end the way you think. Who knows what's really going to happen to Little Yugi...besides us, I mean! Anyway, stay tuned!

Mena: Okey doke, next up is **Phoenix727**! Hey, guys! You know, I never thought of that. We _do_ think about murder a lot now don't we? Oh well, you'll just have to endure a little more! And what's this I hear about the Terminator? Did he sneak in or something? I thought he was governing California...

Toli: -.-; See what _I _have to deal with? My empathy for you radiates like heat. Anyway, our next response goes out to **DMoS13 **and Torru. Hey, wazzup, guys? I'd tell you what I want you to fix, Torru, but my nosy twin is still hanging around...

Mena: I know just how you feel! I nearly burst into tears when Yugi took Yami's place in the seal. That was awful! And I think it's "Orichalcos". I dunno. I almost feel guilty for what we're putting Yugi through in the story!

Toli: O.-; You'll get over it. All right, our next guest is **Silver Moon Phoenix**. You're alive! Great! You know, too many people want to get their hands on the Millennium Puzzle. And you notice, they haven't even dealt with Bakura the thief in the show yet? He's just hanging around in the Puzzle like a squatter...

Mena: Sorry, Nona isn't telling anyone what her spells are. She says they're nobody's business. You'll just have to remember an old one.

Toli: Or give up on controlling bodies completely.

Mena: Okay! Next up is **Marshmellow13Dragon**. Hope you got your shower in time! Yeah, it makes a little sense why she has to kill Yugi. It's so funny, it seems like a lot of people feel sorry for Nona. And will we kill him? Wait and see...hehehehe! PS: Don't let the muse thing discourage you. It's easier than it looks to find one. Toli, I gotta take this next one.

Toli: Go right ahead.

Mena: Okay! The next respond goes to **dragon shadows**! Hey! How ya doin! It turns out we didn't need the spirit of the Millennium Plate's protection after all! Oh, and she contacted me in her dreams and told me if I call her Lexie again, I'll pay. Her real name is Jesselda, I think. She doesn't seem very nice. Oh, and don't worry about me wearing the Plate. It's a small plate and I can drill a hole in the top!

Toli: Or you could use the hole and string that's already there.

Mena: Or that! n.n;

Toli: All right. Next we have **Millenniumgrl126**. Yes, isn't Nona evil? I worked on her personality myself. I'm terrible. I'm letting her attempt to murder him.

Mena: Please keep Killer under wraps! I'm getting scared!

Toli: Anyhows, the next review response is for **Ayamari**. Thank you for the compliment! We're churning these chapters out as fast as we can for the reader's sake. We hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Mena: And next is **Krista123**. It's okay, we're just glad you reviewed this time! Apparently we surprised you! Yes! You didn't guess! Thank you so so much for all the great compliments. I feel sorry for Yugi too, but don't worry, there _will_ be a happy ending. Toli promised.

Toli: (grumbles) So I did.

Mena: Okay! next on our list is **SilverTiger-GoldenPhoenix**. How ya doin'? Now, don't worry, the tape sticks well but it doesn't stick long. We're glad your hair grows fast; I wouldn't want my crazy ideas to get you teased!

Toli: Hmm. Why must the innocent die...I don't know. It makes stories freakier, I guess. You'll have to ask an authority figure about that. WILL YUGI BE SAVED? I can't say. Sorry! You'll have to come back next time!

Mena: And now we have **xcrystalclearx**. Hey, and welcome! We're glad you enjoy the story! The chapters are going but the climax is still coming! You'd better not miss it!

Toli: And finally, **Masami, Mistress Of Fire**. Wow, I'm used to calling you StubsMcGimp. Anyway, Hey! (attempts to return returned returned return--) (crack) OW! OH NO! _MY _HAND!

Mena: O.o; You're both waveaholics...

Toli: And while you're at it, could you find the cure for the common coffee high? It's a little problem I'm dealing with...

Mena: Jesselda says that she can get right on the Mind Vacuum thingy, you just have to say where and when. Hey, I didn't know you took dancing lessons, Damion! That is so sweet! I love guys who dance!

Toli: Just don't get any ideas, all right, Mena?

Mena: Wow! So many people like us!

Toli: We'd better head out and start working on the next chapter! We don't want to disappoint anyone!

Mena: Right! Come on, Lex--I mean, Jesselda! (grabs Millennium Plate and follows Toli through exit door)


	13. TWELVE: The Hope

Mena: It's that time again! Hooray! Toli wanted to wait a little longer to update, but I convinced her otherwise! Yay! I am invincible! I WILL BE A DICTATOR!!

Toli: STOP IT WITH THE SUGAR-HIGNESS!

Mena: (squeaks) Sorry.

Toli: Well, let's roll, then! First we'll do the review responses, and then on with the story!

**Kameeko **and Kamoray

Toli: Uh oh....Hahahahahahahahaha! You noticed! Congratulations! It's true, Yami _can't _survive if Yugi is dead. But Yami and all the others were so grief-stricken that they didn't even think about that. Which means, Yugi is alive! Hooray!

Mena: Yay! You guys are so smart! Please pay special attention to the notice just before the story!

**Phoenix727**

Mena: EEEEEK! THREATS! (grabs emergency shield)

Toli: That's not a threat. Well, maybe it is. You know, I'm just going to go sit in the corner. Thank you for the review, but please, put the sword down. The mention of murder drives Mena insane--like sugar and rainy nights.

Mena: Scared...scared... O.O

**Silver Moon Phoenix**

Mena: I can assure you, it's not good for the gang. Or, as Seto Kaiba would call them, the nerd herd, the geek convention, the goof troop...

Toli: He hasn't said that last one.

Mena: YET.

Mena: Don't cry, it'll be okay...eventually...Toli, please remember you said this story would have a happy ending.

Toli: I DIDN'T FORGET.

**Krista123**

Toli: You're lucky Mena wanted to go ahead and post this chapter. I don't want you to die of starvation sitting at your computer all day or something!

Mena: Especially not on our consciences!

**Elizabeth Aiken**

Mena: YES! CLIFFHANGERS ARE EVIL! But don't worry, this chapter ought to fix that! We have a lot in store for Little Yugi, but that's all we can say!

**Marshmellow13Dragon**

Toli: Yep. All you said is true.

Mena: Except the killing part.

Toli: No, that's true too.

Toli:Anyway, thanks for enjoying and hope you continue to enjoy our installments!

Mena: P.S.: The muse thing is hard. But I'm sure you'll get the hang of it.

**Millenniumgrl126**

Mena: EEEP! THREATS!

Toli: (puts head in hands) Not again. Well, trust me, I think you might be satisfied with this chapter. And oh yes, Nona has manymanymanymanymany issues, but Charter won't take her. Too bad. Anyway, don't let us delay you; read the next chapter!

**anime ruthless v.1**

Mena: Wow! Thanks so much for adding us to your favorites list! That means a whole lot to us!

Toli: We're glad you decided to jump on the bandwagon! Please continue to read and review!

**Masami/StubsMcGimp**

Toli: Hey! (waves sign with picture of hand on it)

Mena: -.-; We can't stop her.

Toli: Oooh! Waveaholics Anonymous! (snatches card and eats it. Then realizes that isn't what card is for and pulls it back out) Make sure you tell (cough)Ashly!(cough) that I feel her pain.

Mena: Fruits take dance lessons? Hmmm. Well, whatever, I think Damion taking dance lessons is cool! (smiles and waits patiently) Um...Damion...let go.

Toli: And you were getting on me about Torru! You guys, pay attention to the notice before the story, okay?

**Erckie **and Kyrie

Toli: Erckie! Kyrie! You're back! We missed ya!

Mena: More Bakura? I don't think so. I'll have to ask Toli. Hey, we like hugs! (hugs Erckie back)

Toli: Hmmm, "updation" I like that word! Anyway, please continue to read and review!

**Ayamari**

Toli: Yes, I feel so terrible. I CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL BAD! But oh well, I'll get over it. Thanks for reviewing! Keep doing it, okay?

**DMoS13 **and Torru

Toli: Well, we didn't mean to depress you...Sorry. But things will get better, despite how I feel, and your spirits will lift!...Eventually...

Mena: You're totally starting to spoil. (hands DMoS13 a box of tissues) This oughta tide you over 'till the good part!

Toli: Torru, I gotta be honest. I need a man.

Mena: TOLI!

Toli: Hey, you blabbed the last time!

(Girls get into fight. Mena's Millennium Plate falls out of her backpack and releases black-haired spirit)

Spirit:...???

Mena: EEEK!

Toli: Mena! Do something while I continue the story!

**IMPORTANT NOTICE THINGY  
**Mena: We've reached 100 reviews! Yay!

Toli: Though the review counter doesn't say so. We ended up going through them all and counting. But we'd like to give a special congratulations to **Masami, Mistress of Fire**, for being the 100th reviewer! (confetti starts flying) We'll do something special for you, promise. But we can't tell you what it is! Just sit tight until next time when we can show you!

Mena: And a special congrats to **Kameeko** for being so smart! Yay! If you think that Yugi is dead, then go back up and read our response to Kameeko's review! No really!**

* * *

CHAPTER TWELVE: THE HOPE **

Nona looked down at the Millennium Puzzle. She picked up the two pieces she had broken off of it and put them back on. Then she dropped the Millennium Puzzle on Yugi's unmoving chest and used the last portion of her magic to transport his body to an alleyway in the middle of Domino City.

"Now my magic is gone, and my mission is complete," Nona said. "Now all I have to do is find an effective way to die."

* * *

_"Lavell!" Nona yelled. "Seif!"_

_She raced down the streets, clutching the Millennium Puzzle's box in her hands. She hadn't meant for them to see that. Not yet. She was so scared now that they wouldn't accept her anymore._

_"Guys!" Nona cried. "Please come back!"_

_"Go away!" Nona stopped in her tracks at the familiar voice. It was Lavell's, but it sounded so...pained._

_Nona was underneath a tall tree with huge, spreading branches. She peeked up into the tree and saw her friends. Seif was holding Lavell, who looked like she had just been crying._

_Walking slowly, Nona approached the base of the tree. She held out her arms, the Millennium Puzzle's box outstretched, as if some sort of offering. "Seif, Lavell--"_

_"Save it," Seif said. His voice wasn't harsh or cold, but quiet and calm. Which meant he was mad. "We already saw what you're capable of."_

_"Why did you lie?!" Lavell burst out suddenly, tears flowing from her distressed hazel eyes. "Why didn't you ever tell us that you're a murderer?"_

_Seif patted Lavell on the shoulder, his polite way of saying, "Shut up."_

_Nona looked down at the tree's shadow which stretched across the ground. "I...I didn't know how you'd take it," she admitted. "I was afraid to tell you. I thought...I thought that maybe I wouldn't have to tell you. But I realized that I would have to. I just didn't know how to break it to you."_

_"So you decided to just pretend it never happened," Seif said._

_Nona kept her gaze on the ground, her mind unconsciously whirling back to that horrible memory. Her arms outstretched, destroying the thieves from the inside out. The familiar scream. Her whirling, to see her friends--her only friends--behind her, staring in horror at the damage she had done. The sounds of their footsteps, running away from her. "Guys, I'm really sorry."_

_"Sorry?!" Lavell exploded again. "SORRY?! You think you can just say 'sorry' and we'll forget that you're a serial killer?! You think a 'sorry' will make us forget how long you've been lying to us?! How could you do this, Nona? How?!" More tears were streaming down her cheeks._

_Seif jumped down from the low branch, and helped Lavell down. "Nona, please, just leave us alone for now," he told her. He and Lavell turned and started walking away._

_"Wait!" Nona cried, chasing after them. The rain started up again, making it harder to see. She tripped, and the box toppled from her hands, precious gold puzzle pieces spilling out onto the wet street. Nona scrambled up and jumped over them, chasing her friends. She forgot the curse and all its pain. She only wanted her friends back.

* * *

_

**THE STREETS**

Joey, Tristan, and Tea were all running full speed to the nearest payphone. They had left Bakura at the hospital with his new palsfor treatment, but they couldn't use the phones there because the hospital hadn't paid its bill yet. Joey had nearly cussed the receptionist out, and both Tea and Tristan had to muster up all the strength they had and drag him out of there.

Then Joey tripped over something and fell, falling into Tristan and knocking him down as well.

"Come on!" Tea exclaimed, teetering on the brink of panic. "We have to call the police and find Yugi!"

"It's too late."

All three heads jerked up to see who had spoken.

Yami walked towards them. His normally confident stride was slow. They were surprised to see tears in his eyes.

"Too late? What do you mean?" Tristan asked nervously.

"Yugi is dead," Yami stated bluntly, not wasting any time.

Tea paled until she was almost transparent. Joey and Tristan mechanically got to their feet, not believing what they had heard.

"D-D-Dead?" Tea trembled, tears already filling her eyes.

"That can't be!" Tristan exclaimed.

"Why would I lie?" Yami asked them in a surprisingly calm voice.

"Where's his body?" Tea asked.

Yami held up the Puzzle hanging around his neck. "I left him in here," he said.

"I don't believe this," Joey spat.

Tea put her hands over her face. "He's gone? He's really gone? He won't…come back?" She burst into sobs.

Tristan had tears too. So did Joey, but his were more of anger than grief. He suddenly whirled and slammed his fist down onto a bus stop's wooden bench. It actually cracked.

Even though his face didn't reflect it, Yami was the most upset about it. He was crying in his mind. He let himself inside Yugi's soul room, where he had put the…body…and closed the door. He leaned against it, letting tears flow.

He felt like a complete failure. He was supposed to protect Yugi, and he had done a pretty bad job. When his light had needed him the most, where was he? Trapped inside the Puzzle. He was beginning to hate the Puzzle because of its confinement.

He had figured out that after Nona...killed...Yugi, she had simply put the Puzzle back together, dropped it on Yugi, and left both his body and the Puzzle in an alley. Yami had come out of the Puzzle and made his discovery. He was so angry, he wanted to kill her himself.

_Is there nothing I can do to bring him back? _He wondered. He thought of the time during the duel with Pegasus when he had almost lost Yugi, and his friends' devotion had somehow brought him back. What now? Would that trick work twice?

No. Because this time, it wasn't just Yugi's soul that was gone. _He _was gone, period.

And he was never coming back.

The silence of the Puzzle was broken only briefly by one quiet, uncontrollable sob from Yami. Then all went silent again.

* * *

**SOMEPLACE ELSE…**

Why wasn't he dead?

Yugi looked around, confused. He was in a thick white fog and couldn't see anything beyond it. He was supposed to be dead, right? Or was this death and he was about to go to Heaven or something?

Yugi reached out and was surprised that he could touch the fog. It felt like wet cotton. Yugi took a step forward and tried to get through the fog. Though it was soft and wet, it was impenetrable. He was trapped in a giant wet cotton ball.

"Hello?" Yugi called out. His voice sounded weird, like it wasn't coming from him but from around him. He tried again. "Hello?"

"What are _you _doing here?"

Yugi jumped when he heard his own voice reply. He called out again. "Who is that?"

There was a laugh, then someone appeared next to him. "Why, _you_, stupid!" the person said, laughing again.

Yugi stared at himself. It was him, indeed. Except it was a transparent him dressed in all black wearing a red jewel on a gold string around his neck. "Why does that surprise you so much?" the transparent Yugi asked.

Yugi wasn't sure how he was supposed to reply. "Well, I'm not exactly used to talking to myself!" he answered.

Transparent Yugi laughed again. "That's funny. You know, you're really crazy. So, what's up?'

"What's up?" Yugi repeated. "I'm supposed to be dead!"

Transparent Yugi shook his head. "No you're not. You're supposed to be alive, only you got hit harder than you expected. But it's okay. You could go back."

"Go back? And what do you mean, I'm not supposed to be dead?" Yugi asked.

"It's like this," Transparent Yugi began to explain. "Whatsherface did attack you with that powerful spell, but it didn't work. You remember when Yami used his magic to get that 'don't move' spell off you, right? Well, he didn't realize it, but he overestimated how strong it was and used a little too much magic. Since he didn't take the excess magic back, it stayed in you. When Evil Girl attacked you with her spell thingy, the leftover magic saved your soul from complete destruction. Do you get it yet?"

Yugi was still a little confused. "I think so, but then where is this?"

"Your subconscious," Transparent Yugi said. "This is where I live. You've never been here because you can't reach your subconscious within your own ability, or something like that. Since you're not dead, you didn't go to the next life, but since you're not alive, you couldn't regain consciousness. So you came here by default!"

"Oh." Yugi was beginning to understand. "So, am I trapped here?"

Smiling, Transparent Yugi shook his head. "No. You can get out. But I'm not sure how or where. I think you'll have to find out for yourself. Anyway, I have to go. You made a mess when you came here. See you!"

"Wait!" Yugi called as Transparent Yugi began to fade away. "What if I need help?'

Transparent Yugi turned and tossed a Duel Monster card at him. "That's what he's for," he said. Then he disappeared.

Yugi looked down at the card in his hand.

The Dark Magician!

"Wait!" Yugi called. "Do you know how I get out of here?"

His transparent, subconscious-resident self didn't answer back.

Yugi sighed. What kind of mess was he in now? Whatever it was, it sure felt lonely without Yami's presence in his mind. At least he had his favorite Duel Monster to help him. But it wasn't a great substitute.

_I hope I can find the way out soon, _Yugi said. He raised the card, and it began to glow.

* * *

**END CHAPTER**

Me: I hope that was to your liking!

Toli: I do too!

Me: We're out till next time!

Spirit:...So, who are you?

Mena: I'm Mena, and this is my twin Toli!

Spirit: Oh.

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 13…Yugi desperately searches for a way out of his subconscious with the help of his favorite card, while his friends try to live life without him…**


	14. THIRTEEN: The Search

Toli: Sorry it took so long. Mena and I have been totally cramming for this brutal test coming up before Christmas break and haven't had time. Even now, we're sneaking onto the website in school to post this next chapter. Sad to say this chaper will be short and we can't make the persoal responses this time, but thanks to **Erckie; ShebytheDogDemoness; Krista123; Dark mage of sea 13; Ayamari; Kameeko and Kamoray; Rainbow Guardian Angel; Egyptianbabe; Silver Moon Phoenix; Masami, Mistress Of Fire; Elizabeth Aiken; Millenniumgrl126; dragon shadows; Phoenix727; Marshmellow13Dragon; Shadowcat; and Amber Eyes23 **for reviewing. Well respond to these reviews and the next set in the next chapter.

Me: Disclaimer? Pleeeease pleasepleaseplease?

Toli: Fine!

Me: WODY!

Toli: That's _WDOY_.

Me: Oh. n.n;

* * *

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN: THE SEARCH**

**(Friday)**

"When do we have a funeral?" Tea asked suddenly.

"I don't even wanna think about that," Joey replied.

"Me neither," Tea sighed. "I just thought I'd ask."

The four of them, Joey, Tristan, Tea, and Serenity, were walking to the Moto house after school. They were all very sad because Yugi wasn't walking with them.

It had been four days since Yugi had been murdered. No one said much about it. Tea went to Yugi's house after school to check on Yami. None of them were sure what to do with the Puzzle since its owner was gone, so they just let Yami have it.

As of yet, they hadn't told anyone. They didn't how exactly how. Were they supposed to talk to some of their other friends and just say "And on another subject, my best friend's been murdered"?

"I just thought of something," Tristan said as they approached the house.

"What?" Serenity asked.

"Yugi's grandfather is coming back home this Monday," Tristan informed.

"What will we tell _him_?" Tea asked.

"What else? Da truth," Joey said.

They rang the doorbell. In a few moments Yami answered. "Come in," he said rather wearily.

* * *

**SUBCONSCIOUS**

Yugi stared at the golden door. It had just appeared in front of him, the thick fog its wall. Maybe it was a way out and that's why it was padlocked. Behind Yugi, the Dark Magician stood silently.

Yugi had no idea he had been searching for an exit for four days. There was no sense of time in his subconscious. Since he wasn't alive, he didn't need food, or water, or sleep, or potty breaks. But since he wasn't dead, his brain and heart and lungs were still functioning.

But it was so only in his subconscious.

Yugi put his hand on the door and pulled it back quickly when he felt the searing heat. The heat started to radiate from the door now.

"That's strange," Yugi said. "Why did heat just start coming off as soon as I touched it?" He carefully touched the lock and was surprised that it felt icy cold, like it was _made_ of ice.

"Well, I'm getting through this door somehow," Yugi said. "Dark Magician?"

Immediately the Dark Magician went into action. It raised its staff and fired a black stream at the door, breaking it into a bunch of pieces. Yugi blinked in surprise.

Walking forward, Yugi peeked inside the room. The walls and ceiling and floor were covered in Egyptian hieroglyphics. There was a table and two armchairs at one end, with three candleholders on the top. The right corner held, oddly, a widescreen flat-surfaced TV.

"Where is this place?" Yugi wondered aloud, stepping inside. The Dark Magician dutifully followed.

"Hey, no trespassers!"

Yugi jumped at the loud voice. He turned and saw a figure emerge from a door on the left wall. It turned out to be a solid-looking Yami wearing a long-sleeved red shirt and black jeans. "When did you get here?" he demanded.

"Duh, I told you," an extremely familiar voice said. Transparent Yugi walked right through the nearly closed door. He smiled at Yugi. "You're lost, aren't you?"

"I-I think so," Yugi faltered, shocked to see Yami. But he could tell it wasn't the Yami he knew. This one didn't have on the Millennium Puzzle; instead he had a red pendant on a string around his neck, which looked a lot like the one Transparent Yugi wore.

"That was awfully stupid," Solid Yami said with a pretend yawn.

"Where do I go from here?" Yugi asked.

Both Transparent Yugi and Solid Yami shrugged. "We don't know," Transparent Yugi said. "We've never tried to get out of here."

"And even if we had, it wasn't this foggy until you _died_," Solid Yami added unnecessarily, acting as if Yugi's death was his fault entirely.

Transparent Yugi shot him a look, and Solid Yami sighed loudly and plunked himself into one of the chairs, draping his left leg over the arm. "If you _must_ know, there might be a way for you to get out. I saw a black door with gold light shining from behind it once when I was exploring. When I tried to open it, I had a seizure. It could be the way out."

"It would make sense, since neither of us are allowed to leave here," Transparent Yugi added.

"Do you think you could help me find it?" Yugi asked Solid Yami hopefully.

Solid Yami yawned and scratched his left knee through his jeans. "Probably not," he replied promptly.

"Oh." Yugi sighed. "Well, then I guess I'll find it myself."

A worried look crossed Transparent Yugi's features. "Are you sure you'll be okay?" he asked, sounding the like the real Yugi for the first time.

Yugi nodded, smiling his don't-worry-I-can-take-care-of-myself smile. "Sure." He left.

Transparent Yugi turned to Solid Yami. "Think he can take care of himself?" he asked.

Solid Yami examined his fingernails. "Nope," he replied. "So what?"

Transparent Yugi rolled his eyes. "You are so uncaring," he said.

* * *

**THE LIMO**

Seto looked at his gold watch. His newest driver was insane. He always pushed the speed limit. Someday he would kill Seto and Seto's ghost would come back to fire him.

"I'd better tell that idiot to slow down before he crashes the limo," Seto said. He was just about to push the intercom button when he heard the horn blare and the limo screeched to a stop. Seto stuck his head out of the window and saw the figure step in front of the limo.

"Don't-!" Seto managed to say before the limo hit the person. The person, obviously a girl, went flying, her long black hair going crazy in the wind. She fell back down and hit the asphalt with a sickening thud.

_That driver is so fired, _Seto thought as he climbed out of the car. He joined the driver at the front of the limo, and they checked out the girl.

She was not going to live. That was obvious from the injuries. (Injuries unexplained-too unPG to mention).

"You are an idiot," Seto said to the driver.

"Oh, don't blame him," the girl said weakly. "I stepped in front of the limo on purpose. I was sure it was big enough to kill me."

"You're--committing suicide, miss?" the driver said. To Seto, it almost sounded like he was saying "See? It wasn't my fault!"

The girl managed to laugh. "You guessed it. My mission was complete, so I had no other reason to live. It was my time."

What was this girl talking about? Seto was confused, which didn't happen often.

The girl sighed, and it seemed to take the rest of her life with her. "Thanks," she said to the driver, before she died.

"You're still fired," Seto said to the driver.

* * *

**END CHAPTER**

Me: Did anybody like that?

Toli: We hope you liked.

Me: Anyway, come back next time!

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 14…As Yugi finally begins to make headway, his subconscious becomes even more dangerous. Especially when he finds out about Expiration Time…**


	15. FOURTEEN: The Timer

(Mena is sitting at a table with her head hidden in her folded arms, crying)

???: What's wrong, Mena-chan? (pats Mena's back)

Mena: We got our first flame! (looks up suddenly) Hey, I recognize that voice...Damion?!

Damion: Hi!

Mena: But how...

Jesselda: I'm back.

Toli: Masami!

Masami: Toli! (Masami and Toli slap high five with unbroken hands)

Jesselda: The prize for being the 100th reviewer is Masami and Damion joining us in the author's notes. Although I don't see why that's considered a prize.

Mena: Really? No how! (jumps up from chair and hugs Damion. Damion hugs back quite happily)

Masami/Tol: Awww!

Jesselda: I'll make the **IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS **since the authors are busy. One, we have unfortunately received our first flame, from a baka named Goomba5. As promised, Bakura will be setting this ignorant baka on fire. (Bakura shows up with a flamethrower and, laughing maniacally, sets Goomba5 aflame and shoves them out the door) Our second announcement is that the chapters will be much longer and the story will be updated much more frequently because of Christmas break. So, happy day. The third announcement is that the review responses are so long we put them at the end of the chapter. So don't worry, we didn't forget.

(Toli and Masami are now trying to pull Mena and Damion apart so they all can move on)

Jesselda: (sighs) And I guess I'll do the disclaimer. Mena wrote this poem. Ahem. "Roses are red, Violets are blue. We don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, and neither do you." Here's the next chapter.

* * *

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN: THE TIMER**

Yugi couldn't believe his eyes. What was an _oasis_ doing in the middle of his subconscious? He stared, as if expecting it to disappear.

It didn't. The palm trees and sand and giant pool of water didn't go anywhere. But it seemed a little less oasis-y with the thick white fog for a background.

"Wow," Yugi said. "My subconscious is incredible!"

The Dark Magician just looked around silently. He had a look of consternation on his face that Yugi didn't notice.

Yugi walked forward and looked into the water. It reflected his face perfectly, like a mirror, since there was no wind to ripple it. And since there was no sunlight, the water looked white.

The next moment, he was underwater.

Yugi almost gasped, but he caught himself in time and didn't suck in any water. He tried to swim for the surface, but whatever was wrapped around his arm only pulled him down farther. He was kicking his legs wildly, and hit something. The grip loosened, and Yugi swam for the surface.

Before he could hit the surface, however, something grabbed his leg and dragged him back. He reached for the surface, as if he could grab some oxygen, but it only got farther out of his reach.

Suddenly, there was an explosion of black light. Yugi felt the grip around his leg disappear, and he swam for the surface. He finally hit it and expelled the air he was holding, surprised that he had been able to last that long. Two hands grabbed his and pulled him onto land.

Yugi sat on the ground and unintentionally stopped breathing. He didn't even notice. He also didn't realize that he had been in no danger of drowning, since he wasn't alive. It was simply a reflex, a feeling of still being alive when he wasn't.

He finally looked up and saw Solid Yami peering into his face. "I knew you'd spaz without help," he said with an air of superiority.

"What are you doing here?" Yugi asked, surprised.

Solid Yami looked embarrassed. "He shamed me into coming," he said, pointing at Transparent Yugi, who was on Yugi's other side.

"But you still saved me," Yugi said.

Solid Yami looked amused. "Saved you from what? A drink? You wouldn't have drowned. All you would've done was eaten water until you surfaced. But, it was I that saved you."

Transparent Yugi rolled his eyes. "The Dark Magician destroyed the monster. All you did was save him from a drink, like he said."

"But he _thought _he was going to drown, so in his mind, I _did_ save him," Solid Yami argued. "But anyway, we have some bad news. You have an expiration date."

"What do you mean?" Yugi asked, confused.

Transparent Yugi sighed. "Well, we found out that you have what is called an Expiration Time. Which means you have a certain amount of time to get out of here before your subconscious kills you. For _real_."

"What?!" Yugi exclaimed.

"It's true," Solid Yami chimed in. "When you were unalive and undead at the same time, you automatically got sent here. But you were never meant to be in your subconscious. You made a 'glitch' so to speak, and ended up here. Your presence in your own subconscious is causing an imbalance. Your subconscious will destroy you itself if you take too long getting out in order to keep balance, in effect destroying us, because without you, there is no 'your subconscious' to exist."

Yugi was amazed. "How much time do I have?"

"About one week human time," Transparent Yugi answered.

"Well, at least I still have plenty of time. How many hours have I been here?"

Solid Yami laughed humorlessly. "Hours? Try five _days_."

"What?! But that can't be possible!" Yugi exclaimed.

"We don't exactly have a 'normal' sense of time here," Transparent Yugi said. "A few days human time is about a few hours for us. It took us a whole day in human time to find you."

"But why so little time?" Yugi asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

"The reason your time is so short is because imbalance can be here only for so long before it makes your subconscious self-destruct," Solid Yami added grimly. "Your subconscious is giving you as much time as possible before that. It's either be killed by itself or be killed by your death if you don't get out of here in a little over two hours."

Yugi stood up determinedly, even though he was very scared. "Then we should hurry," he said. They started to walk, with the Dark Magician following.

"Do you think you could find the door you were talking about again?" Yugi asked Solid Yami hopefully a few subconscious minutes later.

"Probably not," Solid Yami replied. "And it may not even be The Door. Maybe it was just there to look pretty."

"Yami!" Transparent Yugi exclaimed. "Will you shut up!"

"What?! I'm just telling the truth!" Solid Yami yelled back.

"Why don't you tell the truth some other time, like when it won't crumble our resolve!" Transparent Yugi shouted.

"Would you rather I tell a lie and lead you down a road of false hope?" Solid Yami shouted back.

"No, I just want you to shut up!" Transparent Yugi yelled.

"_Both of you stop it_!" Yugi yelled. "If you fight like this we'll never make it!"

They grumbled and turned away from each other. "Pessimist," Transparent Yugi muttered.

"I heard that, you dictator," Solid Yami snapped back.

"Please!" Yugi's voice was rising.

"Sorry," both subconscious-dwellers said in unison.

They continued walking.

* * *

"_Please!"_

Yami's head snapped up. Had he just heard Yugi? He looked around hopefully.

There was no one in the room with him.

Sighing, Yami slumped back down on the couch. As a last resort, he opened the mind-link he used to have between himself and Yugi. But the silence of death greeted him on the other side.

Yami placed his fingers on his forehead and closed the link. He could feel tears trying to rise up and angrily fought them down. He was through crying. Tears wouldn't bring Yugi back, so why waste them? Why bother continue to grieve over someone who was gone?

Yami shut his eyes and tried not to think about how monumentally he had failed Yugi. He wondered suddenly where Nona was. Perhaps off somewhere, happily gloating over the success o her heartless mission. How could she take the life of an innocent boy--simply because of what we wore around his neck?

_I was his protector._

Yami hated Nona.

_I was trapped in this stupid Puzzle._

He glared at the Puzzle sitting on the table in front of him.

_Yugi is gone, and I can't bring him back. I failed. In completing her mission, Nona caused me to fail mine. Yugi shouldn't have had to face death alone._

Rage was building inside of him.

_I'm supposed to be with him always. I was not with him!_

Yami smacked the Millennium Puzzle off the table. It hit the wall, but didn't break. He rested his elbows on the table and put his face in his hands.

_Then why...am I still here? The one thing I was meant to do--protect Yugi--I can do no longer. Why do I have to still be here? Why? Will I have to suffer forever because of what I cold not do?_

"It isn't fair!" Yami found himself yelling through his tears. "It should have been _me_, not him!" He fond himself knocking over the table and tipping the couch. He punched a hole in the wall and kicked the Millennium Puzzle into another corner.

* * *

"_Wait. Who are you?"_

_"I could not tell you that myself."_

_"What do you mean?"_

_"I have been trapped in this Puzzle for a very long time. My memories have disappeared, along with most of my sanity." A wry smile spread across his lips._

_The girl looked down at the Puzzle in her hands. Her fingers were still slightly glowing blue from the spell she had just botched. "You're trapped...in here?" she repeated in surprise. "But how can that be?" She looked back up. "How can I free you for good?"_

_He shook his head. "You can't," he said. "Somehow I know, you aren't the one who is supposed to free me. I don't know who is, but it isn't you."

* * *

Yami found himself on the floor several hours later with a splitting headache and a bleeding fist. The living room was trashed all around him. A fist-sized hole was in the window. The Puzzle was lying on top of several pieces of broken glass, still intact after the beating it had taken earlier._

_Why do I feel so dizzy? _Yami wondered. If he had been awake two hours ago, he would have felt a jolt of unexplainable pain in his chest. But he had not. He found his eyes closing again.

* * *

"You don't honestly think he did all this, do you?"

"Think about it, Tea. The guy's gotta be really upset about...you know. Who knows how he acts out his grief."

"Man, he even punched a hole in the window. That must be why his hand was cut up."

"I just don't think this is how he would cope. I mean, it's so, so...destructive."

"Well, if it wasn't him, then who do you believe it was?"

Yami's eyebrows knitted as the voices made his head hurt more. He wasn't on the floor anymore; it felt like he was lying on the sofa. Something was wrapped around the hand that had been bleeding. He raised his uninjured hand and put it over his forehead as if to block out the pain.

"Hey, guys, I think he's awake." There was the sound of feet rushing over the carpet towards him. Yami managed to open his eyes and saw the heads of Joey, Tea, Tristan, Ryou, and a transparent Bakura leaning over him. Joey and Ryou were leaning over the sofa. Everyone looked concerned, except Bakura, who looked mildly interested.

"Dude, what happened to the livin' room?" Joey asked.

"Obviously the Pharaoh decided to trash it, you foolish human," Bakura sneered.

Tea was shaking her head. "No way. Yami wouldn't do that. Yami, tell us what happened."

Yami didn't answer. He didn't want to.

"Maybe some robbers came and did it," Ryou suggested.

"I did it," Yami finally answered.

Both Tea and Ryou looked shocked. Joey and Tristan looked unhappy, and Bakura looked triumphant that he had been right.

"But...why?" Tea had to know.

"I was angry," Yami answered. He sat up, and everyone moved their heads to give im room. "I was angry at myself for failing Yugi. I wasn't exactly sure of what I was doing, and I didn't even really want to. But I did."

"I didn't know you were capable of psychotic rages, Pharaoh," Bakura said with a smirk.

"Shut up, Bakura," Ryou and Joey told him in unison.

"Do you want us to help you clean up?" Tea asked.

Yami looked around at the mess. "Very well," he said, swinging his legs off the sofa and standing up.

* * *

**END CHAPTER**

Toli: Another chapter completed!

Damion: (patting Mena's hand) See, Mena-chan? You've got 100-some reviews that countermand that one stupid flame.

Mena: (nods) You're right, Damie-chan.

(Masami and Toli wink at each other)

Toli: Join us next time!

* * *

**NEXT IN CHAPTER 15…Time begins to run out faster than the three travelers expect, and now it's a race to live…****

* * *

REVIEW RESPONSES**

**Masami, Mistress of Fire**

Mena: Hi, Masami! Hi, Damie-chan! Sorry we didn't let you in on your prize for being the 100th reviewer last time, but it's in here! We hope you like it! (blushes) At least I do...

Toli: Mena, don't be giving anybody ideas, okay? I don't want to have to smack you...

Mena: What? I said NOTHING BAD...

Toli: That's what they all say. Masami and I, we can see through you and Damion's shenanigans.

**Shadowcat**

Mena: Thanks so much for the compliments! We're glad you enjoy our story!

Toli: Keep reading, okay?

**Erckie **and Kyrie

Mena: OOOH! SUGAR-FILLED BEVERAGE! (snatches)

Toli: (puts head in hand) Oh, great. Thanks for reviewing, guys! We're glad you enjoy the plot. Hope you enjoy the next chapter!

**ShebyTheDogDemoness**

Toli/Mena: (watches court scene)

Mena: (jumps up) Yeah! Guillotine the (beeep)!

Toli: -.-; Mena, that's OUR villain. And we already killed her off.

Mena: Oh. Well... (jumps up and down) Guillotine the dead (beeep)!

Toli: I didn't know you were a judge. Quite interesting. You can sentence Seto to lack of care for his driver running over a girl and Solid Yami for being so uncaring.

Mena: Please continue to read and review!

**Krista123**

Mena: What's a piccollo?

Toli: Does that matter? No. You'd better grab something to eat, Krista, because we don't want you to die!

Mena: Yeah! We'd like our reviewers to live!

Toli: Keep reading and reviewing (and eating) okay?

**DMoS13**

Toli: Hey, guys!

Mena: Enjoying the story? And _not_ my sister? (glares threateningly at Torru)

Toli: (doesn't notice) Yeah, I hope Yugi can find a way out too...I mean, well...never mind that. Solid Yami's kinda uncaring, isn't he? I thought it would be funny to add a Yugi and Yami that are like opposites of the real Yugi and Yami.

Mena: Stick with us!

**Rainbow Guardian Angel**

Mena: Hey! You look new around these here parts!

Toli: (rolls eyes) What is this, the wild wild west? Anyway, glad you enjoy the story! Mena wrote the part with Kaiba and his driver. We'll be updating a lot more frequently, thanks to the schoollessness of Christmas break!

Mena: Yay! Keep coming back, okay?

**Egyptianbabe**

Mena: You like it? Thanks a bunches!

Toli: We are so happy you like our story. Hope you enjoy the next chapter!

**Silver Moon Phoenix**

Toli: "Idiot brigade"? Yeah, he hasn't used that one.

Mena: He might have it on his to-do list.

Toli: Ugh, don't even mention that episode where Yugi loses his soul. Man, that was terrible!

Mena: Yeah, but it does kind of seem like Yugi's current predicament, only they all think he's dead.

Toli: Yeah. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

**Elizabeth Aiken**

Mena: Yay! It's so nice to see you! We're so happy you like our story!

Toli: The chapters will be getting longer and more frequent, so keep joining us!

**Millenniumgrl126**

Toli: Don't you just feel sorry for Yugi's friends? They all think their little buddy's dead.

Mena: And they didn't even stop to question why Yami hasn't ceased to exist. Joey even broke a bench, poor thing.

Toli: And Kaiba is way uncaring, isn't he? Kind of like Solid Yami.

Mena: Yeah, those two belong together.

Toli: We're glad you like! Hope you like this one!

**dragon shadows**

Mena: Hey, dragon shadows! Or can I call you Jessica? (proudly holds up Millennium Plate hung around her neck with pink ribbon) See my Item? Speaking of which, where did Jesselda go?

Toli: Oh, she went to get somebody...thing.

Mena: Oh, ok. You're right, we couldn't kill him. Now Tristan we could kill. Or Pegasus. Or Rebecca, or Mokuba, or even Gramps...

Toli: O.o; You've got a sick mind, Mena.

Mena: Oh, whoops.

**Phoenix727**

Mena: M word? What's that?

Toli: You don't want to know.

Mena: Is it Mena? Money? Make? Miles? Madness? Mirror...

Toli: Hah, lunatic yami. Yeah, I have to deal with one of those now, but it's Mena's. Come on, no need to threaten/promise each other or tie your hikari to the wall. Come on now, the story isn't worth evil deeds. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter. And yes, we would love for you to put our story in your C2. Thanks a bunches for choosing us!

Mena: Makeup? Meat? Martians? Mannequin? Marble? Mistress...

**yugirules**

Toli: Okay! We made it! Soon enough?

Mena: Glad you like this that well! Hope you enjoy this chapter!

**Lady Celest**

Mena: Hahaha! Suspense kills!

Toli: And it makes or great motivation to come back.

Mena: But we'll try to spare you some. Ha, "two weirdos and a Dark Magician", that would make a great story title! Hope to see you soon!

**anonamous**

Toli: Okay...sure.

Mena: This one's long! Isn't it?

**dontmesswithYami**

Toli: Don't worry! Yugi isn't dead! He's happily trapped in his subconscious...well, not happily, but trapped. Hey, aren't you reading Slain too?

Mena: You are! We'll have to update that too!

Toli: Yeah, vamps for Christmas!

**Ayamari**

Toli: Solid Yami isn't as mean as he is uncaring. But uncaring can be seen as mean.

Mena: Yeah, that's a possibility. Anyway, hope you like the next installment!

**Marshmellow13Dragon**

Toli: ? Kinda, I guess, but his friends think he's dead. Don't hurt the poor keyboard because of your French test, though, it didn't arrange that.

Mena: Your cousin? Like Kaiba? Yes, very scary...(shivers)

Toli: Wouldn't you fire your chauffeur if he ran over somebody? Well, maybe you don't have a chauffeur. Anyway, thanks for reviewing and keep doing it!

Mena:...Wait. You got your shower, right?

**Kameeko **and Kamoray

Toli: I think that stupid review counter is broken.

Mena: Yeah, we had more than it said. And we still do!

Toli: I don't know about that deleting reviews thing. I think you can delete your own, but not somebody else's.

Mena: Solid Yami isn't weird, or mean, he's simply uncaring in a nutshell. And Kaiba's ex-driver is incompetent.

Toli: Sorry about the cliffie thing. I can't help it. I thrive on cliffies.

Mena: No, that's coffee.

**END RESPONSES**


	16. FIFTEEN: The Cry

**Responses at the end of the chapter.**

Toli: Welcome back!

Masami/Mena/Damion: (singing "Welcome Back by Mase") Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back!

Jesselda: -.-;

Toli: Ready for another hyped up chapter, kids?

Mature People Pretending To Be Kids: YEAH!

Mena: It's the most wonderful time of the day! (hugs Damion's neck)

Toli: (warningly) Keep it simple you two. I just got the Almighty Crow Bar (lightning and thunder) and it's glowing.

Jesselda: (suddenly smiles evilly) I'll just hold that for you, Toli. (takes crowbar. Never trust the yami of someone happy and innocent. EVER)

Masami: Another awesome chapter to this awesome story! (runs around the room) WOO FREAKIN' HOO, MAN! WOO FREAKIN'-- (trips on baggy pant legs on cue and knocks Mena and Damion down)

Toli: (who managed to jump aside) None of the personalities in here, alive or dead, own Yu-Gi-Oh! Isn't that a surprise!**

* * *

CHAPTER FIFTEEN: THE CRY**

"How much time left?" Yugi asked frantically.

"I've been keeping time in my head!" Solid Yami yelled. "One hour!"

"One hour?!" Transparent Yugi repeated in disbelief. "We have to hurry!"

"How about we wait out the earthquake first!" Solid Yami said over the noise.

The three of them had been running around, looking for what they hoped was The Exit Door. While doing so, they had watched Yugi's subconscious deteriorate as the imbalance began to take its toll. The fog changed from white to black, the ground got bumpy and cracky instead of smooth like it was, and weird happenings like earthquakes and windstorms had been popping up. At the moment the three were hiding under a sturdy tree as another earthquake roared by.

"It's gone," Solid Yami said with relief as the noise faded. He, Transparent Yugi and Yugi got up and started running again.

"I hope we're running in the right direction," Transparent Yugi said.

"We have to be," Yugi said, afraid to think that they weren't.

"That doesn't exactly mean we are," Solid Yami added unnecessarily.

"Yami!!" both Yugis yelled at the same time.

"I'm sorry!" Solid Yami exclaimed.

They kept running.

**LATER**

"Hurry!"

The wind was like a wall that kept pushing them back. They had to hold hands-even Transparent Yugi, who was solid, though he didn't look it-and push forward, step by step.

The wind finally gave out and they all fell forward, pushed by their own force. They got back up, Yugi the slowest in getting up, and started running again. They had been running since they had left the oasis, stopping only occasionally to wait out disasters.

"Stop," Solid Yami said.

They did.

"What?" Yugi asked, biting his lip.

"This place is familiar," Solid Yami said.

Yugi looked around. On all sides they were surrounded by black fog. "It is?"

Solid Yami nodded. "It may look like fog to you, but it's varying scenery to us. I've been here before. I think we're on the right track!"

"That's great!" Transparent Yugi exclaimed. "Let's keep going!"

They continued on. Suddenly Yugi tripped and fell. "Ow!" he exclaimed as his face hit the hard ground.

Transparent Yugi and Solid Yami stared at him. "That _hurt_?" Yami blurted.

Yugi stood up, rubbing his forehead. "Yes. Why?"

"You don't feel pain in the subconscious," Transparent Yugi said. "Unless…"

"Unless you're about to die for real!" Solid Yami interrupted.

Transparent Yugi groaned. "We're running out of time," he said. "How much time left?"

Solid Yami opened his mouth to speak-then closed it. Then he paled. "I don't remember," he admitted nervously.

"That's even worse!" Transparent Yugi exclaimed. "We have to go as fast as we can and never stop! Let's go!" They helped Yugi up, and all three started running.

After a while, Yugi slowed. "Guys…I'm in a lot of pain…" he said weakly, holding his stomach.

"Your subconscious is trying to kill you already!" Solid Yami exclaimed without needing to. He grabbed Yugi and unceremoniously threw the teenager on his back. "I'll carry you. Boy, you're a lot heavier than my Yugi is!"

"That's because I'm half-transparent, duh," Transparent Yugi said.

"I already knew that!" Solid Yami said.

"_GUYS_!!" Yugi yelled.

"Sorry," they said.

They all started off again.

* * *

"Is that a door?!!" Transparent Yugi yelled suddenly.

They peered through the black mist and saw gold light outlining a rectangle shape.

It was The Door.

But was it the right door?

They ran to it. But before they reached it, another earthquake started up. This one created a mini-canyon that opened underneath the door, and the door dropped down into it.

"No!" Yugi cried.

**THE KITCHEN**

_"No!"_

Yami felt the pang; he heard the cry. It was Yugi!

Or was it? It could just be another hallucination. He'd had about six others, where he thought he'd seen or heard Yugi somewhere in the house.

But none of the illusions had come with any feeling. Yami opened the block that he'd put on the nonfunctioning mind-link, and gasped at the sudden pain that flooded through it.

Pain? _Pain_?! **_PAIN_**?!?!?!?

You didn't feel pain if you were dead! That meant Yugi was alive! Yami could feel himself getting excited. The only question was, where was Yugi? His body hadn't shown any signs of life, so that meant he was somewhere else. Was it possible that Nona had transported him to the Shadow Realm?

No, that couldn't be. If he had, he wouldn't have survived for six days. He probably wouldn't even have survived six hours.

So that meant he was somewhere _else_.

And wherever he was, Yami planned on finding him.

But first…

Yami grabbed the phone. After a brief remembrance of the desired number, he dialed. The phone rang four times before it was picked up.

"Hello?" Tea asked.

"Tea, it's Yami. I need you to listen and listen well, and don't interrupt me. When I'm finished, hang up and relay the message to Joey, Tristan and Serenity."

There was a short silence. "Uh, okay," Tea said uncertainly.

Yami took a deep breath, hoping he wasn't about to raise false hope. "Yugi is not dead. I just felt him coming from somewhere, and I heard his voice. I know he isn't dead because there's pain coming through our mind link. I'm going into the Puzzle to see if I can find him. Call the others and bring them over to the house; I'll leave the door open. Understood?"

Tea didn't seem to be able to talk. "You said…Yugi's…he's…!!!"

"I'll take that as a yes. Please hurry, Tea," Yami said and hung up. He went into Yugi's room and grabbed the Millennium Puzzle off the desk. Putting it on, he took a deep breath and willed himself inside.

* * *

"Wheeler residence."

"Joey? It's Tea.Are Tristan and Serenity still with you?"

Joey glanced over his shoulder, where Serenity and Tristan were chatting on the sofa without him. It was obvious Tristan was makig a sad attempt at flirting with his little sister, and it irked him. "Yeah," he said. "Why?"

"I just got a call from Yami. He wants us all to go over to the Moto house right now."

"Why?" Joey asked.

"Because he says Yugi's still alive!"

Joey gripped the receiver. "What?! _Alive_?!" he exclaimed, making Tristan and Serenity look up in confusion.

"He said something about feeling pain through their mind link. He's going into the Puzzle right now to look for him, and he wants us to come over. Hurry, Joey! Meet me at Yugi's front door in ten miutes will you?"

"Okay, Tea," Joey said, feelig excitement building in him. "We'll be thea, no doubt. Seeya then."

"Okay, bye." Tea and Joey hung up.

Joey turned to Tristan and Serenity. "All right, guys, shoes on! We're goin' to see Yami!"

The two stood up. "Why, Joey?" Serenity asked curiously.

Joey felt a smile cover his face. "Because Yugi's still alive, and we gotta be thea t' see 'im!"

* * *

_There was a knock on the door. The tearstained face lifted. in?" Nona called._

_The door opened, and Nona saw Seif. She gasped and stood up. "Seif. You...came to see me?"_

_Seif nodded solemnly._

_In only a few seconds, Nona had run into his arms, cryig on his shoulder. "Why?" she asked. "I thought you and Lavell hated me."_

_"I may hate what you have done, but I could never hate **you**," Seif told her. "I wish you hadn't kept the truth from us, and I also wish you hadn't killed all those people in the first place, but I could never abandon you like that. We've been too close for too long for me to be that mean to you."_

_Nona looked up into his silver eyes. "Where's Lavell?" she asked._

_"She...didn't want to come and see you." Seif looked upset."Lavell and I are moving to the United States with our mom. I knew I had to say goodbye."_

_"I **am** sorry, Seif," Nona said, feeling more tears spill. "I am. I ever wanted to lie to you guys." She wiped the tears from her face. "Will I...ever see you again?"_

_Seif smiled his soft smile._

_"I'd have it no other way, sister."_

**END CHAPTER

* * *

Mena: Thanks for reading the latest chapter! (still hugging Damion's neck while watching him draw another picture)**

Masami: Damion, what are you drawing?...O.o...Or do I want to know? (looks over Damion's free shoulder)

Toli: Is it something bad? (looks over Damion's head)

Jesselda:-.-; Here are the review responses now...

* * *

**REVIEW RESPONSES

* * *

****Phoenix727 **and Shadow Phoenix

Toli: Author powers. Don't they just rule? If only they worked in school...

Mena: (snaps fingers) Instant straight As!

Toli: Thank you guys so much for reinforcing your idea that the story is good. And for calling that flamer stupid. I mega-appreciate it. I hope Shadow Phoenix kills him in a slow, terrible way... (glares at the mention of the flamer)

Mena: O.O Well, thanks for your review!

* * *

**dragon shadows**

Mena: Hmm, Jess. Yeah, that'll work. You know, you'd think that would be a good nickname for Jesselda, but her name is pronounced like it has two Zs in it, and not two Ss.

Jesselda: Don't bring me into this conversation. I may have to be your yami, but I don't have to let you discuss me with others.

Mena: But Jess was the one that took original interest in you! It's a privilege she deserves!

Jesselda: Whatever!

Toli: (butts in) Anyway, thank you for all your reviews!**

* * *

Marsmellow13Dragon and Sarki**

Toli: Dontcha just hate those mean subconsciounesses? And those murderous limo drivers?

Mena: Yeah, I fell behind on school and got my break on December 23. Toli was on time and got hers on December 18, I think...lucky twin.

Toli: Thanks for the review. And glad you got the shower. Hope you plan on taking another one, though.

* * *

**Kameeko **and Kamoray

Toli: Yes. Cliffies and coffee. Quite the dangerous combination. Speaking of coffee, I want some.

Mena: Get over it. We have none.

Toli: Glad you're mad at that flamer. I think we all are. But don't stay mad forever, or you'll be too distracted to read chaps. Okay, Kamoray? Great. Thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**DMoS13 **andTorru

Mena: Evil time! It's the enemy now! Let's destroy all the clocks in the house!

Toli: Or let's get grips instead! Thanks for reviewing, guys. And Torru...us, lunch, anytime. Just say the word. I'm bored and I need attention.

Mena: You have plenty of--

Toli: Quiet. I'm trying to look pitiful.

* * *

**Silver Moon Phoenix **and Luna

Mena: Yes I agree! He's stupid! pumps fist) I got at least three different people/spirits going after him. He won't be waking up tonight...heheheheh...

Toli: O.o; Yeah, um, right. Anyway, no betting on the story! Then I have a nearly repressible urge to make the bet setter lose! But I'll try to stay on track...only to please you reviewers...all the stuff I do for all of you...I mean, thanks for your review!**

* * *

Loyal fan**

Mena: (squeals) No way! (gives Loyal fan a Yami and a Yugi plushie just for the name) It's people like you who make my day!

Toli: Wow, you're really a totally loyal fan? Awesome! Yeah, I would've gotten Malik to go after that flamer, but he was too busy terrorizing Finland. Or something. Thanks so much for the nice review! Hope to see you again!

* * *

**SPUW Commander, ruler of the eastern hemisphere, whatever!!!!**

Mena: Yeah! Let's celebrate! (more confetti)

Toli: Wow, you asked just in time! Thanks to spring break, more and longer chapters is exactly what we're serving up! Thanks for the good timing!

* * *

**ShebyTheDogDemoness** and Mera and Sinya 

Mena: (pumps fist) Yeah! Let's stuff the piece of (beeep!)

Toli: -.-; I think being around you guys makes her weirder...

Mena: Too bad you're not a judge. You hand out good justice! Especially to (beep!)y pieces of (beeep!) like or dear little villain!

Toli:...And she gets worse...thanks for the review!

* * *

**anime-ruthless v.1**

Mena: Yeah, I'm pulling for Yugi too! Would you believe my own twin sister won't tell me the ending!

Toli: Why should I? You can be as surprised as anyone else! Anyway, thanks for the encouraging review!

* * *

**Masami, Mistress of Fire**

WE ARE SO HAPPY TO HAVE YOU IN THE AUTHOR'S NOTES! We hope you noticed the little trademark act of yours we stuck in there this time. Since you are right in the A/Ns with us, we'll simply answer your review there! How's that?**

* * *

Zapper133**

Mena: Hi! Welcome! You're right. Let's kill anybody who flames!

Toli: You're taking the words out of context. -.-;

Mena: Anyway, thank you so much for the nice review! Hope you come back next time!

* * *

**everyone**--We thank you profusely for the great reviews, especially after our flame. We also give a special thanks to those wo told us the flamer was wrong about our story. That makes us very, very happy! Thank you all for coming!

* * *


	17. SIXTEEN: The Rescue

(Damion and Mena are sitting at a table with their heads bent together over a sheet of paper)

Toli: What are you guys doing?

Damion: (voice gets louder) ...man! Woo freakin'--POW!

(Damion and Mena burst into laughter)

Masami: Not funny!

Toli: Seriously, guys, it's time for the new chapter, and... (trails off when she realizes Mena is sitting in Damion's lap)

Mena: And what, sister?

(Toli faints)

Damion: Hmm. Wonder what her problem is.

Masami: Now look what your shenanigans have done! (kneels near Toli) Come on, Toli, wake up before something bad happens!

Jesselda: They don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, in case you didn't notice. Yu-Gi-Oh would be 57.3 percentless popular if they did.

* * *

**CHAPTER SIXTEEN: THE RESCUE**

"The door's got no wall? You didn't mention _that _part!" Transparent Yugi yelled at Solid Yami.

"It did when I came here!" Solid Yami protested. He shifted the unmoving weight on his back. "You know how the doors are in this place. It'll probably still work. Now there's no time to argue. We have a bigger problem: Yugi just passed out."

Transparent Yugi paled. "Then who's going to go get the door?" he asked.

Solid Yami let Yugi down to the ground. "I'll get it," he said grimly. "And before you start telling me why not to, either one of us sacrifices ourselves or we all die. One's better than three, so don't try to stop me."

Transparent Yugi looked scared, but he nodded. Yami looked down into the canyon. He took a deep breath and jumped in. He disappeared into the darkness.

Transparent Yugi waited...and waited...and waited. Finally there was a yell. "Okay! Grab Yugi and jump!"

"Have you lost your mind?!" Transparent Yugi yelled down. "We could kill him!"

"Just _do _it already!" Solid Yami yelled.

"Fine, but if he's flattened, we're blaming you!" Transparent Yugi dragged the unconscious figure to the edge of the chasm and tossed him over. He waited until he got an all-clear yell, and jumped in. He landed on his butt on the ground in the chasm. Of course, it didn't hurt him.

"Ha ha, see?" Solid Yami said triumphantly, pointing at the still upright door. He had caught Yugi and laid him down on the ground. "All I've got to do is pull open this baby and--" he reached for the knob and pulled on it.

Immediately an electric shock ran through him. He ignored the pain that he'd only felt once before and pulled harder. The door slowly began to budge.

Transparent Yugi watched in awe. "Okay, so maybe it _will_ work," he said.

* * *

Tea was waiting almost impatiently inside the game shop. She sighed with relief when Joey, Tristan, and Serenity came in. They were all wearing presentable clothes, but it was obvious they hadn't been making any plans to go anywhere. 

"Joey, I'm confused," Serenity said as they headed to the living room where Yami had instructed Tea to tell them to go. "Yami says he felt pain through his and Yugi's mind link, and that let him know Yugi was still alive. But why pain? And why now?"

Joey shrugged. "I dunno, sis. I know almost nothin' about Yug's Puzzle. I don't think even he or Yami knows _every_thing about it. All I know is, if our little buddy has a chance of comin' back to us, then I wanna be thea for 'im."

Serenity nodded. "Me too," she said solemnly.

They found Yami in the living room, sitting on the sofa. His eyes were closed, and he wasn't moving. The Millennium Puzzle around his neck was glowing ever so slightly.

"What's he doing? Taking a nap?" Tristan wondered aloud.

"I think his mind is inside the Puzzle looking for Yugi," Tea explained as they all sat down on the sofa or in chairs.

"When will he come out?" Serenity asked worriedly.

"When he's got Yugi with 'im," Joey told her reassuringly, putting an arm around her shoulders.

They were silent for a moment, watching Yami. Suddenly Tea burst out, "Guys, I didn't want to say anything, but I have a bad feeling about this."

"Whaddya mean?" Joey asked, turning to face her.

"Well--" Tea stammered, looking down into her lap where her hands fidgeted, "Yami told me before that he and Yugi share feelings, and thoughts, and emotions and everything. And--he has said to me that-that sometimes he thinks he can hear or see Yugi, and it turns out to be a hallucination."

The others listened with grave faces.

"I just--have a feeling that maybe Yami is imagining things again. I mean, I don't want to pass off the real thing as a hallucination, but I don't want to raise false hopes, either." Now there were tears in her eyes. "It hurt so much when Yami first told us Yugi was dead. If this turns out to be fake, I...I..." She dissolved into tears. "I don't know _what_ I'd do!" she sobbed.

Serenity had tears sparkling in her eyes as well. She hid her face in her hands. Tristan was quick to comfort her, while Joey went over to sit next to Tea and pat her back. "Don't you worry, Tea. Yami can tell what's real and what's not. You jus' wait. He's gonna open 'is eyes any minute now, and he'll be Yugi with a smile. You jus' watch."

"I hope so, Joey," Tea said through her tears. "I hope so."

* * *

**MILLENNIUM PUZZLE**

Yami could sense Yugi well, now. He was alive somewhere. But where?

That he didn't know. But he was determined to find out. He would find Yugi as long as there was a Yugi to find.

Yami walked up the steps. He was searching the corridors where Yugi's presence felt the strongest. So far he hadn't had any luck. But he would never give up until the signal was gone. And maybe not even then.

Suddenly Yami stopped and stared. There was a door in front of him, a door he'd never seen before. It was solid black and made of steel. Someone was pulling it open from the other side, little by little. Yami could sense Yugi strongly behind the door. He ran to it.

"How are you doing?" asked a voice that sounded just like Yugi. But Yami could sense that it wasn't him.

"I'll live, for now," a voice that sounded exactly like Yami himself answered. Yami realized with a start that he _had _seen this door before, only it had had a tall brick wall around it.

"Who is there?" Yami called out.

"Hey, is that somebody over there?" the Yugi-voice asked.

Yami put his hand on the door. "Yes it is," he said. "Is Yugi with you?"

"He sure is!" the Yami-voice said. "Help us open this door, please!"

Yami put his other hand on the door and started to push. The door grated loudly, like it was dragging on the ground, but the bottom of the door was inches clear of the floor.

"Hurry!" the Yugi-voice exclaimed. "We don't have much time!"

Yami pushed harder. The door grated open some more. He found himself looking out into darkness. A couple of figures were barely visible. One was standing a little bit away from the door, and the other was inches away from Yami's face.

"All right, give him Yugi!" the Yugi-voice commanded.

There was a moment of silence. Then the door went open a little wider, and Yami saw Yugi's head. Yugi was being passed to him. Yami grabbed the teenager's shoulders and pulled him clear of the door.

"We have to close it, quick," the Yami-voice said. "Before the open door becomes another imbalance." The door slowly grated back.

* * *

Solid Yami collapsed on the ground. Transparent Yugi knelt next to him to check and see if he was okay, when the fog around them lightened back to white and the ground became smooth again. The loud wind they had been hearing stopped. 

"Hey, are...you okay?" Transparent Yugi asked.

Solid Yami opened his eyes and nodded. "Just...kind of hoping this pain'll go away."

Transparent Yugi watched him worriedly. "Can you sit up?"

"Just a sec..." Solid Yami laid there for a while, and then he sat up without any help from his friend. He smiled at Transparent Yugi. "I'm okay now."

"Great!" Transparent Yugi gave him a brief hug, and then stood up. "Now our biggest problem is getting ourselves back home. I'm lost. Any ideas?"

"Nope," Solid Yami said, stretching. "I think I'll just enjoy the returned tranquility."

Transparent Yugi gave him a look which plainly said "I'm glad you're okay, but don't start pushing my buttons."

* * *

The four friends sat nervously in the living room. They had been there for an hour since Tea's teary confession. Ever since she had gotten Yami's call, Tea had been really excited at the thought of seeing Yugi again. Yet something in the back of her mind told her that see was never going to see Yugi again, and she had to be ready for that possibility. But she could still hope, right? 

As long as her hopes weren't false.

"What's takin' 'em so long?" Joey complained.

"Will you shut up, Joey?" Tristan commanded irritably.

"I hope everything's all right," Serenity said.

"It will be," Tea replied. "It has to be," she added under her breath. She glanced at Yami, who was sitting beside her on the sofa. At least his outer shell was. His eyes were closed, and he sat perfectly still, evidence of he fact that he was still searching the labyrinth inside the Puzzle for Yugi. For maybe the ninety-seventh time that day, she desperately hoped that Yugi was okay, and that it wasn't too late or something.

Just then, Yami's eyes opened. "I found him," he stated, although he didn't look or sound nearly happy as Tea had thought he would be.

Joey, Tristan, and Serenity, however, didn't seem to notice. They bombarded Yami with questions before he could continue. "Where is he?" "Is he okay?" "Is he hurt?" "Can he talk to us?" "Why ain't he out hea?" "Does he know what happened?"

Tea, however, could see hat everything wasn't all right. "Yami, what's wrong?" she asked.

The other three fell silent, suddenly noticing themselves that Yami didn't seem too happy.

"I found Yugi," Yami began. "But he is unconscious. I am going to return control of his body to him, and I want you all to take him to the hospital."

The excitement died, replaced with a new fear. "All right," Tea said bravely.

Yami held her gaze for a few moments. She could see the pain in his eyes, but it didn't show in his face. He nodded, and then closed his eyes.

All of a sudden, the Millennium Puzzle gave off a bright flash of light, temporarily blinding everyone in the room. When it subsided, they found Yugi, slumped over in Tea's lap. They all stared at him for a few seconds.

Then, as if someone had hit a switch, action started.

"Come on, let's go!"

"Everyone put your shoes back on!"

"I'll get da car!"

"Let's call the hospital in advance!"

Tristan lifted Yugi from Tea's lap and carried him outside. Joey had already bolted out the door to go get Grandpa's car. Serenity helped Tea, who was too shocked to think straight, get outside.

Outside, they were met by a panic-stricken Joey. "Gramps must've taken his car!" he exclaimed. "We gotta hoof it!"

Serenity looked scared--until she spotted something on the street. "I have a better idea," she said. She left Tea's side and ran out into the street, just as a black limo was driving by.

"Serenity!" the others yelled.

The limo screeched to a stop inches away from Serenity, who had her hands out. The door on the back opened, and out stepped Seto Kaiba. "What do you think you were doing?" he snapped at Serenity.

"I'm sorry if I startled you, Kaiba, but we need your help," Serenity said. She looked pale, but also proud that she had taken such a big risk for a friend.

"Whatever," Kaiba answered, his cold blue eyes sweeping over the group. "If you and the rest of the idiot brigade wants to become hitchhikers, you're going to have to learn to do it the old-fashioned--" He stopped when he came across Tristan, who was still holding Yugi.

"Please, Kaiba," Tea said, "we need to get Yugi to the hospital and we don't have any transportation."

Kaiba looked at Yugi for a few minutes. He looked like he was trying to come up with something to say. "Sorry," he finally spat. "I'm on my way to an important meeting."

"A meeting?!" Tea cried. "You'd sacrifice a life to be on time to a stupid _meeting_?! You can't do this!"

Kaiba looked like he was unhappy with his decision, but felt like he couldn't take it back for some reason. He turned to get back in his limo, but Joey had come up and was now standing between him and the door. "Kaiba, you can't do dis," Joey said in a voice that sounded like he was trying to control his anger. "Even if you don't like Yugi, I know you don't want da fact dat we couldn' get 'im da help he needed in time on yer conscience. Besides, he's saved your butt so many times now I've lost count. Dontcha think you maybe owe 'im?"

"Seto Kaiba owes no one," Kaiba said. 'Now out of my way, mutt."

Joey clenched his fists. "Kaiba! I ain't gonna fight ya 'cause I got more important things t' worry about. But if you get in dat limo and drive away, yer gonna regret it, I'm tellin' ya!"

"You heard me," Kaiba said. Joey glared daggers at him as he reluctantly stepped out of the way.

Kaiba stepped inside his limo and shut the door. Yugi's friends glared at the tinted windows so hard they nearly shattered. They couldn't believe that Kaiba had such a grudge against Yugi that he wouldn't even help get him to a hospital.

They watched the limousine, waiting for it to drive away. Suddenly, the door opened again. "Get in," Kaiba ordered.

Serenity's and Tea's faces lit up in relief.

* * *

**END CHAPTER**

Mena: The chap's over! (wraps arms around Damion's neck) I'm glad you were here to share it with me, Damie-chan!

Damion: I was thinking the same thing, Mena-chan!

(Masami and Toli pretend to gag)

Jesselda: (sighs) Join us next time.

* * *

**Extra Note: **We apologize if we angered any Seto fans in this story. We weren't trying to make him seem so mean, but it just came out that way. Again, we apologize. Seto is one of Mena's favorite characters, so don't think we're trying to bash him. Anyway, on with the responds.

* * *

**REVIEW RESPONSES

* * *

****Loyal fan**

Mena: I hope you get an account soon! We can't wait to be on your favorites list!

Toli: And until you do, keep reading and reviewing, and take care of those plushies! (waves) Thanks for your review!**

* * *

Millenniumgrl126 **

Mena: Yahoo! We posted! YAAAY!

Toli: Sorry, I cannot tell you or anybody else what's going to happen to poor little Yugi. It's against author rules to do spoilers!

Mena: To some extent! Yeah, Yami's smart. Took him a while though. But anyway! Thanks for the awesome review!

* * *

**Dark mage of sea 13**

Toli: Nope, sorry. Noon tomorrow's filled. How about noon Monday?

Mena: Toli, I really must object to you and Torru dating when you barely know each other...

Toli: It's a blind date, sister. Get over it. Anyway, thanks for reviewing again, and you'll just have to wait and see what happens to Yugi...like everyone else...muahaha I am so evil...I mean, seeya!

* * *

**Ayamari**

Mena: Glad you've joined us again! Yeah, we all wanna know what happens to Yugi. Thanks for reviewing and hope you enjoyed the chappie!

* * *

**Marshmellow13Dragon**

Toli: You're right! It ain't fun if it ain't mean!

Mena: To some... o.-

Toli: Haha, jump into the canyon! Funny how you mentioned that when it was our plan all along! Happy new year, what? Tomorrow! Yeah! Hope you stay up for the ball drop! Don't miss our plane and thanks for the review!

* * *

**Phoenix727**

Mena: O.O Whoa.

Toli: Damn, "I extinguished the flame"?? That's just scary. But hey, I'm happy!

Mena: (stares at Toli)

Toli: Anyway, like I've said to others, I can't tell you where the story is going. But that shouldn't stop you from guessing. Lemme give you a hint...you're mostly right. And that's all I'm saying! Thanks for the review, and double thanks to Shadow Phoenix for murder. I won't turn you in.

(Mena is still staring at Toli)

* * *

**Kameeko**

Toli: It took them a little while, but, yeah!

Mena: And now Yugi's escaped his subconscious, but he isn't awake!

Toli: I wish I was as absorbent as you guys. When I get angry, I stay that way for at least a couple hours. Anyway, thank you for reviewing and I hope you enjoyed the next installment!

* * *

**Silver Moon Phoenix**

Mena: Wow. You guys are still hunting the flamer down?

Toli: Too late. Sorry. Someone else has murdered him. But thanks for the effort! Now, you two, don't be stealing each other's money! But, then again, I see why...

Mena: O.-; Anyway, thanks for reviewing! P.S.: Hope you noticed the "idiot brigade" thing.

* * *

**Elizabeth Aiken**

Mena: Yay for sugar highs!

Toli: Don't start. Anyway, thanks for the continuing reviews, and hope you enjoyed the chapter!

* * *

**dragon shadows**

Mena: Hey, Jess!

Toli: Mena, what DID Damion draw?

Mena: A picture of Masami tripping over her pants legs. Now you know how weird Yugi's subconscious is, Jess. But maybe things will work out! Thank you very much for reviewing and hope you enjoyed!

* * *

**ShebyTheDogDemoness**

Toli: Oh, that's okay, Sheby. Mena isn't too unmanageable when she gets all hyper and weird around you guys.

Mena: Yeah, I'm better now. I think. I hope. Oh no... (runs to look in mirror)

Toli: Anyway, I hope Mera and Sinya don't plan on reading our minds, because then they'd know how the story ends. And I really don't want that! I want you guys to be as surprised as everybody else! And it's weird about the names in stories thing...very. I hope I don't find another Toli out there, or I'll go ballistic, probably. Anyhow, thanks for reviewing!


	18. SEVENTEEN: The Discoveries

Toli: I'm back! And I'm all revived now! Welcome to yet another chapter!

Mena/Masami/Damion: Hey readers! (wave)

Jesselda: Leave me out of it.

Toli: I have a special announcement! For the last chapter, we received 15 reviews! The most we've ever gotten! Yay! (confetti flies down) Anyway, as a reward for _so_ many people reviewing and giving us encouragement, we're doing two things. One, this chapter is extra-long!

Others: Yay!

Toli: And two, we decided to do something very strange. We're having a Reviewer's Choice Awards at the end of this story! It's something really odd we thought up. We'll have a little one-shot side story at the end of Home And Not Alone. The categories and nominees are at the end of this chapter, after the review responses. You, as the reviewers, will vote for one person under each category. Now, this will only work if you all participate. If nobody wants to participate, that's fine too. But come on! We like doing things that include the readers! Remember, the awards will be after this story ends, so we can (hopefully) obtain plenty of votes! (stops to breathe)

Damion: That sounds like fun!

Masami: ..."He says while looking at his girlfriend."

(Mena and Damion are still hugging)

Jesselda: WDOY.

Toli: Enjoy!

* * *

**SEVENTEEN: THE DISCOVERIES**

Joey paced back and forth in the hallway. He moved so fast that he kicked up a little wind. Near him, Tristan, Tea, and Serenity sat in chairs lined up against the wall. Distanced from the group, Kaiba leaned against another wall.

The hall was quiet, serving to add to the tension they all felt. The only constant sound besides' everyone's breathing and the clock on the wall ticking was Joey's pacing noises--footsteps, with an occasional grunt or sigh.

"What happened to him?" Kaiba suddenly asked.

Three of the four people glared at him; Serenity didn't glare because she was too busy trying not to cry. "I don't think dat's any o' yer business, Kaiba," Joe snarled, as defensive as a guard dog.

Kaiba turned to face him. "Look," he said, "you all shamed me--yes, you shamed me--into giving you a ride so you could get Yugi here. I at least deserve to know how he got into the state of needing to be hospitalized."

"Someone's been trying to murder him," Serenity answered quietly before Joey could retort to Kaiba.

Seto's eyes widened. "Who?"

"A girl named Nona," Tea said. "She was trying to break some spell, and she had to kill everyone who had owned the Puzzle. Yugi was last on her list. We don't know where she is now."

Kaiba looked like he was trying to remember something. "What did she look like?" he asked.

"If you must know," Joey growled, "we got told that she had long black hair and blue eyes and pale skin--"

"Then she's dead," Kaiba stated matter-of-factly.

Everyone stared at him. "How the heck do _you_ know?" Tristan demanded.

"My former new limo driver ran over a girl matching that description in the limo," Kaiba said. "She actually stepped out into the street to get herself killed. She said some ridiculous things about it being her time, and her mission was complete."

There was more silence as Yugi's friends let that information sink in. If Yugi made it through, then he would be safe; but was it a good thing to be happy that someone had committed suicide?

"Joey? Tea? Guys? What are you doing here?"

They all looked up and saw Ryou standing at the beginning of the short hall. He looked surprised to see them. Kaiba rolled his eyes, as if to say "Yet another member of the mindless party."

"Ryou!" Tea said. "Are you all right?"

Ryou nodded. "I was coming back from my last checkup when I saw you guys. What's going on?" Then his face paled. "Does this have something to do with Yugi?"

Tea nodded, feeling tears spring to her eyes. "Yug's in da hospital," Joey said grimly.

All the remaining color flooded out of Ryou's face. "Oh no! What happened?" he cried, quickly coming over. Tristan explained it to him as Tea wiped the tears from her eyes before they could fall.

"So now we're waitin' for da doc t' come out and tell us how he is," Joey said.

Ryou was slowly shaking his head. "This is terrible...poor Yugi..."

Just then, the doctor they were all waiting for opened the door and stepped out with an expressionless face. Joey, Tristan, Tea, Serenity, and Ryou all jumped up and crowded around her. "Well, doc? What's the diagnosis?" Joey asked, hoping there was some good news.

The doctor lifted the chart to her eyes and skimmed it. She looked up with a sigh. "Am I to assume you are all his immediate family? One of you needs to be."

"I'm his sister," Tea jumped in quickly. "Please, tell us how he is."

The doctor eyed her suspiciously, but when she saw the fear mixed with hope and desperation in their eyes, she relented, whether or not she believed Tea. "Well, he's still breathing, and his heartbeat is stable." There was a collective sigh of relief. "But he isn't conscious." The fear rose again to the point where you could have pulled some from the air. "It's like he's simply asleep, but he won't wake up, despite the stimulants we've used. There doesn't seem to be any physical injury or brain damage, but he'll need to stay here until he wakes up."

"Does this mean he's in a coma?" Serenity dared to ask the question on everyone's mind.

"It is a comalike state, but with comas, there is usually at least _some_ brain activity. With him there is not." Their hopes sank farther.

"Doc..." Joey managed to say. "Isn't thea anything you can do for 'im?"

"We'll do all we can, of course, but there is a chance he will never wake up again," the doctor told them.

"I--I see." Tea swallowed. "Can we see him?"

"Not all of you at the same time," the doctor said. "You can go in in pairs of two. But don't stay very long. We're going to run some more tests on him soon." She turned and walked down the hall.

Joey, with some effort, swallowed. He was trembling visibly. "O-Okay den, da girls can go in first, and den...me'n Tristan'll go in. Ryou, we can--"

"I don't want to go in," Ryou said quietly, making them all look at him. "I-I just couldn't bear to see him like that."

They all felt the same way he did. "Come on, Serenity," Tea said after a few moments. They held hands for moral support and bravely opened the door.

The room was small and white. Curtains were half-covering the wide window on the left. Two or three chairs were up against the right wall. But the girls noticed this in about .39 seconds. Their attention was focused on the bed with its head against the wall opposite the door. Lying in it, hooked up to several strange machines, was Yugi.

Serenity's hands went to her mouth as the door swung shut behind them. "Oh, no..." was all she could say.

Tea bravely approached the bed, careful not to bump into the machines. There was an IV, which was attached to his arm, what looked like a heart--or maybe brain--monitoring machine, and a few others which she wasn't sure the purpose was. In the bed, surrounded by a bunch of beeping machines, Yugi looked so small and frail. His eyes were closed, and his chest was going up and down--the only sign he was still alive.

Slowly, Tea sank onto a low stool beside the bed. "Oh...Yugi..." she whispered. Tears brimmed in her eyes and she put her head down, her hair hanging in her face. Serenity, who had worked up the courage to come and stand beside her, put a comforting arm around her shoulders.

* * *

Yugi lay on his side. He had just been asleep, hadn't he? He now stared blankly in front of him, not really seeing anything. His mind was clouded--was there some place he was supposed to be?

"Yugi?"

Yugi sat up. "Is someone there?" he called out.

There was a giggle. "Yes, silly, it's only me." A girl with log black hair wearing a gray poncho over a shirt and denim skirt knelt down in front of him, her blue eyes twinkling. "You've been asleep for an awfully long time, Yugi."

Yugi blinked. "Do I--know you?"

The girl laughed again. "You silly!" she chirped, wrapping her arms around his neck and squeezing him. "I'm Nona! Your best friend! Don't tell me you _forgot_!"

Yugi tried to smile. "I'm sorry, but I did," he admitted.

"Then I'll refresh your memory," Nona said, releasing him and helping him stand up. "You and I are the two best friends in the whole universe! And we've been friends since the beginning of time."

"Oh," Yugi said. He looked around. He and Nona were sitting on a cliff that jutted out over a beach. Off over the horizon, the sun was shining down onto the mostly calm water. "And where are we?"

"We're in home!" Nona told him. "This is where we live." She looked worried. "Don't you remember anything at _all_?"

Yugi knitted his eyebrows as he tried to dig through the haze of his brain and find some memories. For a split second, his mind's eye saw the face of someone familiar...but he couldn't place who she was. "I think I just saw a girl with brown hair and blue eyes. Is a girl like that here?"

Nona's face twisted. "Oh, no. She's from your past life."

"What?"

Nona sighed. "Yugi, listen. You used to live on Earth, but then you were killed by a psycho murderess. Something weird happened, and you were sent here to live for all eternity. We've been friends for ages!" She looked unhappy. "Don't you remember?"

Yugi shook his head.

"Then I'll just have to help you remember," Nona said. "I promise that things'll be back to the way they were." She gave him a warm smile. It reminded him of someone else's smile...but he didn't know who...

_I wonder what caused me to lost my memory, _Yugi thought. Whatever had happened, for now he would trust Nona to help him. After all, she said they were friends and she wanted to help.

What reason would she have to lie to him?

* * *

Ryou sat away from the group of Yugi's friends, turned away from them, his head in his hands. He felt awful about not going in to see Yugi, but he felt like he just couldn't take that. Yugi was his friend, and Ryou didn't want to see him like this.

Ryou saw a gold flash come from beneath his line of vision, and Bakura's transparent form stood beside him, arms crossed. "So, you don't want to look at the runt on his death bed, eh?" Bakura said to start the conversation.

"Bakura, please...if you could just shut up and leave me alone, it would be great," Ryou said into his hands.

Bakura frowned. "Well, fine then. I was _going_ to tell you a little something I know of the finishing spell used on Shorty, but if you want me to leave..." He turned as if to walk away.

"What?" Ryou looked up. "You know about it?"

Bakura cast a side glance over his shoulder. "I do. Between listening to the Pharaoh's posse of idiots talk about the girl and my own personal knowledge, I know quite a bit about this Nona," he said. "And I've used a finishing spell many times."

"What do you know about it?" Ryou asked. "What does it do? How does it work? Can it be reversed?"

Bakura smiled a self-important smile. "Not so fast, Ryou," he said. "Why should I tell you anything?"

Tears were threatening to spill. "Bakura, _please_. Yugi is my friend and I want to help him."

Bakura sighed. "Oh, all right, just don't give me that pitiful look." He plopped down in a chair next to his light side as Ryou waited eagerly. "The finishing spell is quite simple--it's like the magic equivalent to poison. It attacks the body's vital organ and shuts them down in a way that causes excruciating pain to the victim. However, if something happens to deter the spell, like a shield of magic, then it won't work properly. My guess is the Pharaoh used magic as a last resort to shield Little Yugi, and that's why that boy isn't dead."

"So, is there still hope?" Ryou asked.

Bakura shrugged transparent shoulders. "Maybe. Maybe not. The thing about that spell is that it had a backup plan, in case it doesn't work as planned. It creates a sort of field distortion inside the victim to keep them from waking up, then enters their unconscious mind and uses a ploy to try and get them to kill themself. I have never had the pleasure of seeing this firsthand, but I know about it."

"What if the ploy doesn't work?" Ryou asked hopefully.

"If it doesn't work, I believe the distortion field is destroyed and the person is revived. But I don't know for sure." Bakura scowled, as if unhappy that he hadn't gotten to keep that information to himself.

Ryou sat in his seat and thought. So, there was still a chance for Yugi to make it. But would he actually make it?

Or would he be tricked by the finishing spell's ploy?

* * *

Solomon Moto hummed happily as he drove his car home. It had been an exciting two weeks in Egypt, but he was glad to be back in the good old city instead of a hotel in the middle of the desert. He smiled, thinking of the questions Yugi would be bombarding him with the second he walked into the door. That was another reason he was glad to be back--he missed his grandson. A woman who had been on the excursion with him had convinced him not to call Yugi every day, and he wasn't very surprised Yugi hadn't called any, either. The teenager had probably wanted to prove how responsible he could be. Solomon wasn't doubting his son's responsibility, but everyone who's taken care of a child knows what the word "overprotective" means.

Solomon parked the car around the back of his house and got out. He opened the door to the backseat to retrieve his suitcase, only slightly surprised Yugi wasn't already outside to greet him. He held his suitcase with one hand as he walked around to the side door and opened it.

"Yugi? I'm home!" Solomon shouted. He didn't hear a response. _Must be out with his friends, _he thought with a smile. He lugged his suitcase to the family room and put it down beside the sofa. _My stamina sure isn't what it used to be! _he thought cheerfully as he went into the kitchen for something to eat. Plane food doesn't count as "food".

Solomon stopped when he saw he note attached to the phone. He pulled it off and read it.

_**Mr. Moto,**_

_**Please meet us at Domino City Hospital.**_

_**Joey, Tea, Tristan, and Serenity**_

Solomon dropped the note. The hospital? What had happened to Yugi?

He was out the door as quickly as he could go.

* * *

**END CHAPTER**

Toli: Nice, was it not?

Mena: Yeah, he--I mean, it--was very nice.

Masami: Damion, it's about time you let go of Mena.

Damion: I don't want to.

Toli: I have The Crowbar! (lightning flashes)

Mena/Damion: O.O AAAAAH! DON'T SEPARATE US!!!

* * *

**REVIEW RESPONSES

* * *

****Silver Moon Phoenix**

Mena: Ooh! If you hit Kaiba with a frying pan, I wanna watch!

Toli: Yep, we thought "idiot brigade" was genius. And very Kaibaesque. Hey, did you notice the new insult? "Mindless party". He's just mean sometimes. But funny. Thanks for reviewing! Hope you participate in the vote.

* * *

**Kameeko**

Mena: Oh no, are you guys placing bets too? Oh, geez...

Toli: Yeah, I think I like OC bad guys better too...like Nona...she's an OC...but she's never coming back, of course. I don't want to spoil--well, yes I do--but Kamoray's right, you guys. Yugi's gonna have a few problems. Nona's trying to brainwash him, did you see? Anyway, thanks for reviewing. Hope you participate in the vote.

* * *

**Millenniumgrl126**

Toli: Poor Yugi. We just keep torturing him and his friends...oh well! Makes the story exciting!

Mena: O.O Killer scares me, sister...(hides behind Toli)

Toli: Killer won't attack if everything turns out okay. Or at least, that's what I'm led to believe (gives Killer a meaningful look) Anyway, thank you for reviewing. Hope you participate in the vote.

* * *

**Elizabeth Aiken**

Mena: Ooh! Aiken twins! Awesome! Hi Ashley! I didn't know you were a twin, Elizabeth. That's so cool, since I'm a twin too! Isn't twinning fun?

Toli: "twinning"? You say it like it's some hobby. Anyway, thanks for reviewing, both of you. Hope you participate in the vote.

Mena: Now that the response is done, time for SUGAR!

Toli: Here we go. -.-;

* * *

**Phoenix727**

Toli: Hey, you guys. Glad you could join us again.

Mena: Hey, don't call Serenity an idiot! She was only trying to help Yugi when she threw herself in front of the incredibly heavy, speeding limo which had a driver that had already run over a girl...okay, never mind.

Toli: Glad I made your Who Doesn't Need To Be Killed list. I happen to enjoy life. And yes, Nona's body is dead and deader. But, that doesn't mean she isn't still just as dangerous. Anyway, thanks for reviewing. Hope you participate in the vote.

* * *

**dragon shadows**

Mena: Hey, Jess! Yes, what Toli is doing to Yugi is awful...

Toli: (smacks Mena on the side of the head) I'm right here!

Mena: (holds head) Ow! Anyway, more exciting things are coming up to stay tuned! And I hope you participate in the vote!

* * *

**ShebyTheDogDemoness**

Toli: Yeah, Kaiba being nice happens once in a blush pink moon. But, hey, he said they shamed him. I didn't know all that about Mera and Sinya...wow. So, what is being like a half-demon like?

Mena: Is it like being a half-vampire?

Toli: I doubt it. You got dog ears, Mera? Anyway, we're currently experiencing Writer's Block with New Life. Sorry. But this one is updated! Thanks for the review, all three of you. Hope you participate in the vote.

* * *

**SPUW Commander, Ruler of the eastern hemisphere, whatever!!!!**

Mena: You have such a long and funny name! Where'd you come up with it? Anyway, thanks for reviewing. I didn't know Kaiba's antics were funny, I just thought he was being cruel as usual. Anyway, hope you participate in the vote!

* * *

**Marshmellow13Dragon**

Toli: Yeah, they jumped in! They could do that since they don't feel pain. Kaiba IS a meanie, but at least he gave them a ride. He almost didn't.

Mena: But they shamed him, like he said! And Yugi's not quite okay yet. He's still got a way to go before he can regain consciousness. But at least he's not in his subconscious anymore!

Toli: Yep. Thanks for reviewing. Hope you participate in the vote.

* * *

**anime-ruthless v.1**

Mena: Hey! Glad we hooked you! Hope you enjoyed this chappie! Thanks for reviewing and hope you participate in the vote!

* * *

**sugarpony**

Mena: Hey! Welcome! Yeah, I'm a Seto fan, too, and I wish he were nicer sometimes.

Toli: We all do, sister, at one time or another!

Mena: Anyway, thanks for the great compliments and hope you participate in the vote!**

* * *

Erckie**

Toli: Hey you guys!

Mena: Hmm...Hey, Toli, their fight looks a lot like ours usually do!

Toli: Hmmm...you're right. Probably because you're sugar high. And yep, you'll see the Subconscious Duo again! Thanks for reviewing! Hope you participate in the vote.

* * *

**Dark mage of sea 13**

Toli: Okay, see you then, Torru.

Mena: (rolls eyes) Yeah, we're all glad he's helping out, for once. He needs to try it more often! Anyway, thanks for reviewing and hope you participate in the vote!

* * *

**Ayamari**

Mena: Yeah, at least he's alive! But he isn't conscious. Hmmm...a problem for the gang to tackle. Well, thanks for reviewing! Hope you participate in the vote!

* * *

**Reviewer's Choice Awards**

**(Note: Each person may have one vote. If you have more than one person/personality/spirit reviewing with you, each can have a vote. Example: if Toli, Jesselda, and I were reviewing, we would each get one vote, resulting three votes from the penname Meant2Live. And please don't come up with your own nominee unless specified to do so)**

**Category: Most Heroic Character  
****Nominees:** Yugi; Yami; Joey

**Category: Most Villainous Character  
****Nominees: **Seto; Bakura; Pegasus; Marik

**Category: Most Annoying Character  
****Nominees: **Tea; Tristan; Joey; Bakura; Mokuba

**Category: Best Dressed  
****Nominees: **Seto; Yami; Pegasus; Mai; Duke

**Category: Most Important Male  
****Nominees: **Yugi; Yami; Seto; Joey

**Category: Most Important Female  
****Nominees: **Mai; Ishizu; Tea; Serenity

**Category: Cutest Character  
****Nominees: **Yugi; Mokuba; Serenity; Rebecca

**Category: Best Secondary Character  
****Nominees: **Mokuba; Grandpa; Rebecca; Duke

**Category: Best Character Of All  
****Nominees: **your choice


	19. EIGHTEEN: The Decision

Mena: We now own Yu-Gi-Oh! Hahahahahahahahahaaaaa...

Mena: (wakes up) Huh? Whaaa...Aww, it was only a dream...(rolls off of Damion's stomach and stands up) C'mon, guys, wake up!

Damion: (jolts awake) What?? FIRE?! WE GOTTA GET OUTTA HERE! RUN, MENA-CHAN! (grabs Mena's hand and drags her to the door)

Masami: (wakes up) Damion! Cut it out now!

Mena: (smiles) It's okay, Damie-chan. I'd burn in a fire with you any day!

Masami: (nudges Toli) Hey, Toli, time to wake up! The peoples are back!

Toli: Hmm? Eh? (struggles to feet)

Jesselda: Why were we all sleeping on the floor under the computer desk anyway?

(Everyone shrugs)

Mena: Well, since it was only a dream, I guess we still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. (sighs unhappily)

Damion: (pats Mena's hand) It's okay, Mena-chan, you can own me!

Mena: (brightens) Really? (hugs Damion) Thanks, Damie-chan! You're the best!

Toli/Masami/Jesselda: (rolls eyes)

* * *

**Note: **Long author's notes mean long chapters, now don't they? Help us out, folks. Help us reach our goal of 200 reviews before the story's over! And also, don't forget to vote on the two new categories for the Reviewer's Choice Awards!

* * *

**Previously...**

Solomon stopped when he saw he note attached to the phone. He pulled it off and read it.

****

Mr. Moto,

Please meet us at Domino City Hospital.

Joey, Tea, Tristan, and Serenity

Solomon dropped the note. The hospital? What had happened to Yugi?

He was out the door as quickly as he could go.

* * *

**EIGHTEEN: THE DECISION**

Solomon Moto spent the rest of the day at the hospital with Yugi. The Wheelers, Tristan, and Tea kept having to leave and coming back.

Solomon watched his grandson's chest rise and fall. The heart monitor was steadily beeping, indicating his heart was okay. Then what was wrong? Why hadn't he woken up yet? He had asked Yugi's friends questions, and their answers had shocked him. Someone had tried to _murder_ his grandson while he had been gone? And no one had bothered to tell him that? He had felt a little relieved that the girl trying to kill Yugi was dead, but only for his grandson's sake. He wasn't happy that she had died. He couldn't be happy that anyone died.

"Come on, Yugi," Solomon said as he held Yugi's hand, "you pull through now. I know you can do it."

He looked up to find the wall clock and see what time it was, and was nearly shocked out of his skin to see someone on Yugi's other side. He relaxed slightly when he realized it was only the transparent spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. He had his head down, his face hidden in his arms, which were resting on the bedside.

"Are you all right?" Solomon asked gently.

The spirit's head snapped up, and there was panic and fear in his eyes until they landed on Solomon's face. Then they closed, and the spirit sighed with what sounded like relief. "Yes," he said. "I'm fine." His eyes opened, and he gazed down at Yugi. "Though I can't say the same for..."

He trailed off, unable to finish.

"Don't worry," Solomon said. "Yugi's going to make it. He always does. He has a stubborn spirit; he won't just leave you all here."

The spirit shut his eyes, and a ghostly tear trailed down one cheek. "I wish I could believe that," he said in a hollow voice.

"What are you saying?" Solomon demanded. "My grandson is going to be all right. Why don't you have a little faith?"

The spirit's eyes snapped open. "Faith isn't going to help _any_one now," he hissed before abruptly vanishing.

Solomon was angry at the spirit for being so negative at first. But then he realized that the spirit had to be hurting badly, and perhaps he didn't know how to deal with the pain he felt. Solomon patted Yugi's lifeless hand. _But it will be all right. You're going to make it, Yugi, and no one can tell me differently._

**

* * *

**

Yami sat on steps, sort of slumped over. He was tracing the cracks in the stone with his eyes. His mind was silent; he wasn't thinking of anything at all. He felt that anything he could come up with to think about would eventually lead to thinking about Yugi, and that hurt too much to think about now.

The locked memories in his maze of stairs and doors didn't even concern him now. Without Yugi, it didn't seem like there was any point to trying to remember his old life. It was something he did only with his partner; doing it alone intensified the hurt.

Yami closed his eyes. He didn't even want to look at the cracks anymore. The cracks led to the stairs, which led to the doors, which led to his lost memories, which led to searching for his lost memories, which led to Yugi's many attempts to help him out.

"Yami."

Yami's head came up. His eyes widened, and what had seemed like extinguished rage rose up inside of him.

It was Nona.

"You," he hissed. "How dare you show your face after what you've done to Yugi."

"You want him back, right?" Nona asked.

"Of course," Yami snapped, standing up, ready to come down the stairs and throttle her if necessary.

Nona nodded. "I know how you can get him back."

Yami's eyes widened. "What? Tell me!" he demanded, coming down the stairs.

Nona bowed her head. "If you want to revive him, then you have to kill me," she said. "With the finishing spell I used, if I somehow die before Yugi dies, its effects will reverse and bring Yugi back to life. All you have to do is kill me."

"Why would you want to help revive Yugi after taking such pains to murder him?" Yami demanded.

"Because my mission can no longer be accomplished," Nona said. "I can either die, or let you kill me and revive Yugi. His death won't help me now. Here." She thrust a black dagger into Yami's hands. "Use that and kill me."

Yami looked down at the weapon in his clutches. His hand gripped the handle, and he raised the dagger to eye level to look at it. Then he turned to face Nona, who was watching him solemnly. It was like killing two birds with one stone--he would save Yugi and, once and for all, get rid of the girl who had been ruining his life. Yami thought back to the night Yugi had been crying after his nightmare, and his hand tightened around the dagger. Yes. This would be easy.

Then, a picture of Yugi flashed into his mind. Yugi always wanted to help people, not hurt them. He always tried to look on the bright side of things. He was slow to anger and loved it when someone changed their ways. Would he want Yami to kill someone, just to save him?

"Just do it," Nona said. "I know you want Yugi back. Please, just do it."

Yami stared at her, and then at the dagger in his hands. He dropped it. "I--I can't," he found himself saying. _I know Yugi wouldn't want me to do this. _

"I thought you wanted Yugi back!" Nona said with obvious surprise.

Yami didn't look at her. "He wouldn't want it this way."

Silence. Yami looked down at the dagger he had nearly used.

Then, Nona suddenly started to laugh. She laughed louder and louder, and the laughter became more and more evil. Yami glared at her and took a step back.

"You're right; he wouldn't," Nona said, sounding quite evil again. "I should have known I wouldn't be able to trick you. You see, I'm not really Nona. I'm simply a component of the finishing spell she used, an emergency option in case the victim somehow escapes the deadly blast, as with Yugi. If you had killed me, you would have sealed Yugi's fate."

"What?" Yami exclaimed. "You were trying to get _me_ to kill him?!"

"That's right," whatever the thing was said with an evil smile. "Congratulations. You passed the test. But there's still a chance to destroy that little nuisance. Once the spell deceives _him _then he will die. And there's nothing you can do about it now, Yami." It laughed again. "I hope you still have some grieving tears left." Then the thing posing as Nona transformed into black dust that dissolved away. The dagger at Yami's feet did the same.

**

* * *

**

"Okay, so here's the deal," Nona said. "You and I have lived here for...um...lemme think...about three hundred years. Together. At first I was the only one here, but then you got sent here and we became _instant_ friends." She smiled fondly, as if thinking of the memories. She and Yugi were sitting crosslegged, across from each other.

"Has anyone else ever been sent here?" Yugi asked.

"Nope." Nona smiled. 'It's just been you and me." She brightened suddenly. "Wait! I know _exactly _what can bring your memory back! Your favorite place to go in the whole world!" She stood up and yanked him up, then turned and towed him to the edge of the cliff.

Yugi began to get a little nervous. "Uhhh...Nona? Where are we going?"

"To your favorite place!" Nona pointed. "Look! See that cloud?"

Yugi looked where she was pointing, and felt his eyes nearly pop out of his head. A big, thick, fluffy white cloud hovered several yards away from the cliff. And planted on top of it was an oak tree with low branches.

"You'd climb the tree and look all around. You always wanted me to join you, but I have a fear of getting stuck in trees." Nona giggled. "If you climb the tree, maybe you'll remember!"

"How are we supposed to get over there?" Yugi asked.

Nona pointed down. "We walk across," she said. She giggled again when Yugi stared down at the beach, nearly a mile away. "We walk across the invisible path that _you_ put down!" Her face suddenly became worried. "You really don't remember?"

Yugi looked at her and shook his head. "No. I don't see anything."

"Because it's invisible, like I said," Nona answered. "Here. I'll walk across first, to show you it's there, then you come across!" She then stepped off the cliff and out into mid air. Yugi was so fascinated in watching her feet walk over what looked like empty air that he didn't notice her fingers glowing white. She reached the cloud and turned. "Okay, now just make sure you're lined up with me, and walk on across!"

**

* * *

**

_"...been sent here?"_

Yami's head came up. Was that Yugi's voice he had heard? He quickly opened up the mind link to try and figure out what was going on.

It was responsive! Yami nearly jumped for joy. "Yugi?" he called out.

No answer.

_"Nope. It's just been you and me." _Yami tensed when he heard Nona's voice. Had she gone after Yugi? Why did she sound so friendly? What was she doing with Yugi? Then, a feeling of dread hit him when he realized that it must have been a part of the plan to get Yugi to kill himself. _I have to find him, _Yami thought. He opened the link wider to be able to trace where Yugi was. He was tugged in the direction of Yugi's soul room.

_"Uhhh...Nona? Where are we going?" _That was Yugi._ "To your favorite place! Look! See that cloud?" _And _that_ was Nona's voice. Yami broke into a run, headed for the exit to his own room. He kept the link wide open, letting Yugi's presence guide him. _I'd better hurry if I want to save him, _he thought, determination making him go faster.

_"How are we supposed to get over there?" _Yugi was asking.

_"We walk across," _Yami heard. He then heard a sugary giggle that nearly turned his stomach. _"We walk across the invisible path that _you_ put down!" _Her tone became less cheerful. _"You really don't remember?"_

_"No. I don't see anything," _Yugi's voice said.

_I wish I could SEE where he was! _Yami thought. Usually that was an automatic feature of opening the link wider, like the hearing. But it was being blocked by something now. He left his soul room and ran across the hall to Yugi's. The door was closed, which was unusual. Yami placed a hand on the door and felt heat radiating from it.

_"Okay, now just make sure you're lined up with me, and walk on across!" _

Yami felt seething anger that Yugi was still in danger. I'm coming, Yugi, he swore. He reached for the knob and threw open the door.

A blinding white light flooded out and filled the hallway. Yami had to shield his eyes. He felt a strange tugging on his legs, like he was standing in rushing water. His instincts screamed at him to run away, but he would _not_ abandon the one he was sworn to protect. He stalked into the light, and suddenly found himself falling. A familiar scream--that wasn't Yugi's--filled his ears.

**

* * *

**

Tea quietly entered the room. Mr. Moto was still sitting at Yugi's bedside, holding his hand. She sat down beside him in a chair. "No change?"

Mr. Moto looked up and shook his head. "No. A doctor came in a little while ago and reported that he was doing the same." He sighed and looked down. "My poor grandson. He endures far more danger than any average teenager should."

Tea nodded in agreement. "But he can make it," she said firmly. _But the question is, **will** he make it? _She looked around the room, trying to find something to get her mind off of the current problem. Her eyes landed on Yugi's Millennium Puzzle, lying on the night stand next to the bed. She stood up and walked around Mr. Moto to get it.

The metal was warm. Tea held it in her hands as she resumed her seat by Yugi's bedside. She let it rest in her lap, somehow feeling a little more comforted with it near her. _It has to be that way for Yugi, too, _Tea thought, more tears brimming in her eyes. She was surprised; she thought she had cried out all the water in her body by now. She looked down at the Puzzle and closed her eyes, squeezing out a tear. _Oh, Yugi, please...please come back to us. I can't lose you again. _

The Puzzle started to vibrate in her lap, making her open her eyes to look at it. It was glowing brightly, bright light reflecting off the shed tear resting on the top. The way it was positioned, it looked like the eye on the front of the Puzzle had shed the tear.

Tea stared at the Puzzle. Why was it glowing? Was Yami doing something to bring Yugi back? She gasped as a flooding white light filled the room and nearly blinded her. She stood up and almost dropped the Puzzle. It was vibrating madly in her hand, like it was trying to shake itself apart. She took a step back, trying to regain her bearings, and let out a gasp when she stepped into empty air and fell backwards. The Puzzle's chain somehow twisted itself around her hand in the confusion as she tipped over. Tea let out a scream as she fell down. She opened her eyes and saw with shock that she could see Mr. Moto, and Yugi's bed, and the chair she had been on. They were getting farther away, like some picture she had fallen out of.

"What's happening?" Tea cried. She continued to fall into white light, the picture growing farther and farther away until it was gone.

_"Well, I've gotten a letter from my good friend Arthur Hawkins, and he's invited me to another excursion to Egypt this weekend." "I hope you're ready, little Yugi Moto, because if you aren't…well, so much the better!" "But Tristan, dat's jus' it—I didn' shove Yugi. I was jus walkin' behind 'im. I dunno what happened!" "It's about time I got rid of you and that stupid spirit in your Puzzle!" "You tried to stab me several times until Yami finally shoved your head into a sinkful of water and got the knife away from you!" "Don't you see, Yami? Maybe it wasn't them after all! Maybe someone else was _controlling_ them from somewhere else! It would make perfect sense!" "Whatever. If you can't do this right, Tea, then I'll do the job and you can join Yugi!" "Yugi, you must believe me. I don't know who she is." "Yugi's been kidnapped...The man…pulled over…he just grabbed Yugi…and threw him in the truck…I tried to stop him…he was too strong." "No. You're my victim, and you're not going to live. You can't plead or negotiate your way out of the inevitable, Yugi Moto." "Yugi is dead." "Please, Kaiba, we need to get Yugi to the hospital and we don't have any transportation."_

"What are those voices?" Tea wondered aloud.

"Tea!"

Tea gasped when she heard the familiar voice.

"Tea! Grab onto my hand now! Before we land!"

"Land?" Tea cried, wildly clutching for this outstretched hand. "Land where?" She had just grabbed his hand when she found out what he meant by "land".

At least she landed on top of him.

**END CHAPTER**

**

* * *

**Mena: Cliffie? 

Toli: Sorta.

Mena: Yay!

Masami: Hey, we're in the author's notes; can we get a sneak peek?

Toli: Nope. Sorry.

Masami: Aww, darn.

Jesselda: Come back if you dare.

Damion: Can we spend the night again?

* * *

**New Categories! Everyone vote on these too! Same rules apply! **

**Category: Cutest (or best) Couple (non-Yaoi or Yuri)  
****Nominees:** Yugi/Tea; Seto/Serenity; Joey/Mai

**Category: Best Dueling Partners  
****Nominees:** Yugi/Dark Magician; Seto/Blue Eyes White Dragon; Joey/Red Eyes Black Dragon

* * *

**RESPONSES

* * *

Phoenix727 **

Mena: Hmm, I see what you mean about the limo thing. And it's okay. It doesn't bug me now!

Toli: You know, now that you mention it...Nona is acting like Rebecca. Oh damn, I did not mean to make her that chipper. Must--return--evil--to--story...

Mena: Haha, Friend Freak. Good one. Anyway, thank you so much for voting! We appreciate it lots!

* * *

**SPUW Commander**

Mena: Yes! Name shortening! Your name is quite creative, but it's kinda long!

Toli: Now, now. Don't try to kill Nona (like everyone else has). We need her for a little bit longer. She'll get hers in the end, don't worry! And thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**Elizabeth Aiken**

Toli: Oh, we know all about being a pain to each others' teachers!

Mena: You guys ever tried switching places to fool your friends? We used to do it sometimes, when our hair was the same length, but now mine is long and Toli's is short, so we can't do that anymore. Too bad!

Toli: Thanks--the both of you--for voting! We really appreciate your participation!

* * *

**Silver Moon Phoenix**

Mena: Yeah, I thought up the "mindless party" thing. "Idiot brigade" inspired me.

Toli: Wow. Four voters from one penname! I hope you all know you tipped the scales in a couple of the categories. Thanks so much for voting, guys. We appreciate it!

Mena: I wonder what that Killer Pancakes from outer space is about?

Toli: Maybe part of the inside joke.

* * *

**kameeko**

Toli: Kamoray wins the bet. Okay, no more betting, I've seen too many.

Mena: I came up with the Reviewer's Choice Awards. I really like being able to have readers participate and stuff and this popped out of nowhere in the middle of the night. I woke up after a dream about going to school in a neon kilt...

Toli: O.-; Whatever. Anyway, thanks for voting, guys! We appreciate your help!**

* * *

Masami, Mistress Of Fire **

Toli: Normally we don't do this for you guys anymore, since we have you in the author's notes. But I need something from you. Meg (our artistic friend) wants to draw a picture of Mena and Damion together, but she needs a description of Damion. You know, hair color, eye color, skin color, outfit. It's really important because we thought it would be cool! Please get back to us! And thanks for voting!

* * *

**Erckie (and Kyrie)**

Toli: Yeah, she needs to die. And stay dead. None of this "I'm hiding out in so and so" stuff.

Mena: But that would shorten the story!

Toli: Which is why I'll contain my rage.

Mena: Isn't that spell-component-deception-etc. thing weird? But it's mysterious! And that makes it exciting! Anyway, thanks for voting--we appreciate it muchly!!!

* * *

**Millenniumgrl126**

Mena: Isn't it awesome? Kaiba was shamed! The thing that was thought impossible, was possible! The CEO giant can be brought down! (pumps fist)

Toli: Okay. I don't want any confusion, so I'll try to explain the spell and simplify it (if I can...simplifying is not my strong suit. Must be why I hate math) Yami used magic to remove the immobility spell on Yugi. He used too much magic, so the excess just floated around aimlessly in Yugi. Nona used her finishing spell on Yugi, and the magic prevented him from dying. Because the original plan didn't work, the finishing spell reverted to its backup plan. It created a little "paradise" world and dragged Yugi's conscious mind into it when he passed out in his subconscious. It erased his memory and created a Nona-clone to try and trick him into getting himself killed. Anything clearer? I hope so. Anyway, thanks for voting!

* * *

**Marshmellow13Dragon**

Mena: Yep, muses count! And we counted your votes as two. Thanks for voting!

Toli: (laughs) If only poking Yugi would wake him up! Yugi would be getting more fingers in his stomach than the Pillsbury Dough Boy! Well, happy...early Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday! That'll have to work.

* * *

**ShebyTheDogDemoness**

Mena:...Oh...O.O...Sister, I'm lost...

Toli: (sighs) It's like this. Mera's a full demon, not a half-demon.

Mena: Oh...okay...I think...

Toli: Thanks for reviewing, guys!

* * *

**dontmesswithYami**

Toli: Thanks for reviewing and voting!

* * *

**Dark mage of sea 13**

Mena: Aw, don't cry. Yugi can make it!

Toli: But will he? (evil chuckle)

Mena: (gasps) Toli! You promised happy ending!

Toli: (grumbles) Oh yeah. Well, thanks for voting, guys!


	20. NINETEEN: The Friendship

Toli: Sorry, everyone. We spent so much time working on this chapter--making it exciting enough that it would be worth the wait--that we can't do our long responses like usual. We are very sorry. We'll have quickie responses, and the responds will go as usual next chapter. Blame it on exhaustion!

* * *

**RESPONSES**

**kameeko**--violent dreams aren't a good thing, you know. Just watch what you watch on TV! Anyway, thanks for voting in the new categories!

**Silver Moon Phoenix**--yeah, we don't have any plans to write a yaoi/yuri story. But anyway, thank you for voting in the new categories!

**Phoenix727**--you'll have to wait and see who Tea fell on. Anyway, thank you so much for your votes!

**Elizabeth Aiken**--cool about the switching! Mena says blue with silver streaks is rad and she might try it. Anyway, thank you very much for voting!

**Marshmellow13Dragon**--actually, Mai joined the dark side after they tricked her. That drove her and Joey apart some. Anyway, thanks for voting!

**dragon shadows**--we don't have much of a problem with yaoi, but we know it offends some people. Anyway, thank you for your votes!

**SPUW Commander**--you're welcome for the update! And thanks for your votes!

**Scarab Dynasty**--welcome to the fic! Doing it with two people ensures it gets updated faster!

**Millenniumgrl126**--glad we could clear it up for you! Thanks for your votes!

**Dark mage of sea 13**--thanks for the compliments and the votes! We appreciate it!

**Erckie**--Nona's indeed a big pain in the butt! Watch it with that frying pan stuff, though!

**ShebyTheDogDemoness**--glad you guys decided to vote! Thanks for helping out! We appreciate it!

**katie**--welcome to our fic! Thanks you so much for the nice compliments and hope you enjoy!

**YamiYugimoto092**--welcome to the fic! Glad you like cliffies; we happen to specialize in those!

**loyal fan**--thanks and hope you think up a name soon!

* * *

**Notice: review record (for a single chapter) broken! New record to beat--16! One more review till 200--special surprise for 200th reviewer!

* * *

**

(Everyone except Jesselda is sitting at a table eating from a giant bowl of barbecue chips. Damion and Mena are feeding each other)

Masami: Is it time yet?

Toli: (crunch) Yep! Let's get to the story! (licks fingers)

Masami: Great! (glances over at Mena) Um, hey, she needs you too.

Mena: Oh, right, story time. Sorry, Damie-chan, gotta go do my work.

Damion: (pouts) Awww...

Jesselda: No one here owns Yu-Gi-Oh because it is illegal for them to say so. Plus they have guns at their backs.

* * *

**NINETEEN: THE FRIENDSHIP**

"Okay, now just make sure you're lined up with me, and walk on across!"

Yugi glanced down at the beach below again. He still didn't see anything. How and why would he put down an invisible path here?

"Come on, Yugi! Don't be afraid!"

Yugi looked back up at Nona, smiling and waving at him. He had lined up with her and was about to walk, but suddenly he had had second thoughts. This didn't seem like a wise idea, even if Nona had already done it. What if he accidentally walked over the edge of this invisible path? Where would he _get_ something like that anyway?

"Come _onnnn_," Nona said, starting to seem a little impatient. "You've done it zillions of times. Just step out onto the path and walk over!"

Yugi gulped. "Okay," he said nervously. He edged up to the brink of the cliff and stretched out a leg. It hovered over what _seemed _like empty space. Yugi was almost afraid to let his weight shift to his suspended leg.

"Just a little more," Nona encouraged with an inviting smile.

Yugi nodded. He leaned forward--

Then heard a thud from behind him and jumped back like it was him. "What was _that_?" he cried, spinning around.

* * *

"Ow..." Yami said. He had landed on his stomach, and Tea had landed on top of him. That hurt just a little. Tea rolled off of him and they helped each other stand up.

"Where are we?" Tea asked, looking around.

Yami glanced around. They were on a grassy cliff that jutted out over a pretty beach a _very_ long distance down. The sun was shining brightly without any hindrance, and the blue sky was cloud-free. It seemed like a paradise. "I don't know..." he said. He trailed off when he saw Tea staring. "What is it?" He turned to see what she was looking at.

It was Yugi, standing at the very edge of the cliff and staring at them. A ways away from the cliff was a cloud with a tree planted on it. Nona was standing on the cloud, glaring at them.

"Yugi," Tea breathed. Then she raised her voice. "Yugi! Are you okay?"

Yugi blinked. "Well--yeah, but--who are you?"

All the color drained out of Tea's face. "Yugi--don't you know me?" she said, taking a step forward. "I'm Tea, your best friend!"

"I only have one best friend," Yugi said. "It's Nona." He gestured vaguely behind him.

Tea turned angry. "Yugi, she's not your friend! She's the one who's been trying to kill you!"

"What?" Yugi's eyes widened.

"Yugi, don't believe her!" Nona called. "_She _is the one who killed you! And that guy is her accomplice! They must have somehow made it to our paradise to get rid of you once and for all!" Panic edged her voice. "Come over to the tree on the invisible path, Yugi! Then we can draw it up and they can't get you!"

"Don't believe her!" Tea shot back. "She's lying to you! She's probably just trying to get you to walk off the cliff so she can kill you!"

Yugi looked terrified--at who no one could be certain. "What..." He turned. "Nona, is this true?"

"No!" Nona cried. "Yugi, I'm your friend! Why would I lie to you!" She made motions with her hands for him to come forward. "Come on, Yugi! Don't let them get you!"

"Don't listen to her!" Tea shouted, vaguely wondering why Yami wasn't backing her up. "She wants to hurt you, Yugi! You can't let her--"

"Tea." A firm hand descended on her shoulder. "Stop it. You're straining him."

It was true; Yugi did look quite pained. "But we can't let Nona get away with this!" Tea cried, whirling towards Yami.

Yami's face was expressionless. "I know. But I think I know what to do." Without a word he lifted Tea's right arm. The Millennium Puzzle's chain was still wrapped around her hand. He unwound it and, holding it in one hand, started walking towards Yugi.

"Yugi! Don't let him get near you!" Nona's voice had risen to a screech. "Come across the path! Please!"

* * *

Yugi turned at Nona's desperate voice. She seemed so worried about what could happen to him if he let them near him. Was it because she cared? But then...Yugi looked back at the unfamiliar girl and guy. They hadn't tried to jump on him the minute they showed up. If they were really after him, why would they try to trick him like this?

The guy had reached Yugi. He looked kind of fierce. Yugi wanted to back away, but he was out of space. He simply stared up into the intense purple eyes, looking for any deception of some sort. But something was up. His eyes...they didn't look angry, or murderous. They were soft, and concerned. It seemed like an expression the guy didn't use often. Yugi suddenly had the thought that that expression was reserved for him. But how could that be? He didn't know this guy.

At least, he thought he didn't.

"Who are you?" Yugi couldn't help asking. The girl had come up now, and she looked so afraid he felt kind of sorry for her.

Suddenly, the guy lifted his arms. Something slightly heavy was draped around his neck. Yugi looked down and saw a golden item now around his neck. _The Millennium Puzzle,_ he suddenly thought. But how did he know that?

"Yugi, we are your friends," the guy said softly. "You can remember us--if you try."

Yugi spared a glance for Nona, who looked afraid also. "Well, I guess I can try," he said. He closed his eyes and tried to dredge up any memories with the two of them in it. Unconsciously, his hands lifted and touched the Puzzle now around his neck. A sudden pain split through his skull and he couldn't help a shudder. He thought he vaguely felt someone's hand on his shoulder, but he was pulled into a strange darkness before he could figure out who.

* * *

_Faces...names...anything..._

_They were so close. He could almost touch them. But every time he reached out a hand, a dark mist pulled them out of his reach. He struggled to get closer to one, but the dark mist was holding him back as well. The touch was gentle, but unyielding. Yugi tried to pull himself out of the soft grip, but he couldn't._

_He had been here this whole time. He just knew it. That paradise...it had been something concocted in his mind. A peaceful fantasy, maybe? But then where did he truly belong?_

_"I want to remember. I want to know who my friends are."_

_You have no friends, a voice answered. Just let the mist consume you._

_What had happened to Nona and the paradise place? He suddenly saw a picture of it, of the cliff and him standing on it and Nona underneath the tree and the two unfamiliar people. The mist was holding it in front of his face. When he reached for it, the mist pulled it away._

_You don't need memories, the voice said again._

_"But I want to know!" Yugi cried out, trying vainly to twist his arms out of the mist's grip._

_You don't need to know._

_"Yes I do!"_

_No, you don't._

_Yugi tried to pull again, but this effort was half-hearted. He slumped unhappily, the hold on his arms the only thing holding him up, and let his eyes close. The coldness of the mist was seeping through his clothes, making him shiver._

_You don't need memories. You don't need anything. Stop fighting and let the mist take over, now. This can be over soon, but you must stop fighting._

_"I just wanted to know," Yugi said, feeling a tear slide down his cheek. Then, in a burst of surprise strength, he jerked back up and away from the grip. "Let me go! I WANT MEMORIES!" He pulled an arm free and lunged at the nearest picture. The mist tried to take it away, but his fingers reached for it and grabbed it before it was out of his reach. The light from the picture flooded through the darkness._

_He saw people. People smiling at him. He felt like he should know them. They smiled and their mouths opened, like they were speaking to him, but he heard nothing. They were all around him, smiling and speaking silently._

_"I know them," Yugi said, "but who are they?" The grip on his other arm and his legs seemed to dissolve, and he stumbled forward, to be caught by a guy with a mop of longish blond hair and brown eyes._

_"Hey, watch it, Yug," the guy said, helping him stand back up. "Trippin's a bad habit."_

_Yugi blinked at him. "Who are you?"_

_"I'm yer pal Joey Wheeler!" he guy said, puffing out his chest and sticking a proud thumb into it. "All da people around ya are friends 'n' family, Yug. Jus' pick one out."_

_"Pick one out?" Yugi looked around at the circle of smiling faces. Somehow, them all grinning at him was a little weird, but he was glad it was warm here. He turned towards the cheerful girl with chin-length brown hair and sparkling blue eyes. "Who are you?"_

_"I'm Tea Gardner!" the girl practically sang. "We've been friends since we were little kids, Yugi!"_

_"Hey, don't forget me," interrupted a guy with short brown hair and brown eyes._

_Joey rolled his eyes. "O' course. His Majesty, Tristan Taylor."_

_A girl with very long strawberry blond hair and green eyes giggled as she ducked underneath Joey's arm, pulling a grin from him. "I'm Serenity Wheeler," she said. "I'm Joey's little sister!"_

_Yugi smiled back. He was remembering them now...places he had been with them, things they had done together...he was even starting to remember when he first met them all._

_"Yugi?" Yugi turned to see a guy with shoulder-length white hair and dark brown eyes. "I'm Ryou Bakura. I'm your friend too. Remember?"_

_"Yeah, I think I do now," Yugi said. It was starting to come back to him. He turned and saw a friendly old man his same height with gray hair and a matching mustache and beard. "Well, hello, Yugi," the old man said. "Surely you wouldn't forget your old grandpa, now, would you?"_

_Yugi blinked, then smiled. "I remember you too," he said._

_"Not so fast, hon." A hand came down on his shoulder, and he turned--again--to find a woman with waist-length blond hair and purple eyes smiling at him. "If you can remember all of them, then you can remember me, Mai Valentine, can't you?"_

_Yugi let his mind process this for a moment. "Wait, I remember you now, too!" he said._

_"See?" Tea said, walking up to him. "You've got a lot of people waiting for you to come back. But first, we're going to show you the memories you forgot, so you can take a stand against the evil threatening you."_

_Yugi was amazed at what he had forgotten: duels and monsters, Millennium Items, Ancient Egypt, Duel Monsters Tournaments, all of his adventures--including his most recent one--it was simply amazing._

_"Okay, now dat yer back to yer ol' rememberin' self again," Joey said, "we got anotha friend t' show ya." He turned Yugi around and pointed._

_Yugi stared as Yami, who he now remembered, walked up behind them. He started walking forward and met him halfway. "Yami?" he said, looking into the older boy's face._

_Yami nodded, smiling a rare smile. "Yes, Yugi, it's me. And I'm here to take you home. To your real home."_

_"Home?" Yami nodded again, and Yugi felt tears coming to his eyes. "I want to go home, back to the home where all my memories came from...but how?"_

_"I can show you," Yami said, extending his hand. Yugi took it, and the light brightened to a nearly blinding extent, filling the whole area and obscuring vision.

* * *

_

Yugi's eyes opened. He was still staring up at Yami, with Tea nearly in tears behind him. Nona was still on the cloud.

"Yugi!" Nona shrilled. "Hurry!"

Yugi turned to her. Now that he knew the truth, she didn't look so caring anymore. "Nona, you can't trick me anymore," he said. "I know the truth. The _real_ truth. I got my memories back."

"_What_?!" Nona cried. Behind him, Yugi heard Tea gasp in relief. "W-What do you mean?"

"I mean I know who you really are," Yugi said. "And I'm not falling for this any more." He stepped back from the cliff.

"Oh, Yugi!" Tea exclaimed. She darted up and threw her arms around him. "I'm so glad you're okay!"

Yugi hugged her back.

"No!" a scream came from Nona. "It will _not _end like this! Yugi Moto, you are going to die and you are going to die _NOW_!!" A black light appeared at Nona's fingertips, which transformed into a black sphere crackling with dark energy. "You aren't getting away!"

Tea gasped. Yugi's eyes widened.

Yami stepped in front of them both. The third eye was glowing brightly on his forehead and his fierce look was back. "Nona, you have caused enough trouble for Yugi!" he declared. "It ends now!" He raised his hand, and the whole place shook with the magic of both.

Nona raised the sphere, which was now twice as big as her head. "End _this_!" she yelled, shooting the ball of dark energy towards them.

"Gladly!" Yami's hand glowed gold. The dark energy ball slammed into a golden force field in front of them and kept pushing, though not making any progress. Yami retracted his hand slightly, and the force field did the same. Then, he shoved the force field forwards, blasting the ball back at Nona with twice the power. It hit her where she stood and exploded in a half-sphere of dark light that quickly expanded. The explosion came against the force field, and the blinding light of Yami's magic soon made it unable to see at all. The three distinctly had the impression of falling before a huge-sounding explosion rocked above them.

* * *

Tea's eyes opened, and she found herself sitting by Yugi's bedside again. Grandpa was sitting beside her, watching her worriedly, one of his grandson's limp hands in his. "Tea, are you all right?"

"Oh--fine," Tea said, nervously pulled some hair behind her ear. She didn't know how to describe what had just happened. She could only hope that Yugi had been saved.

Suddenly, Yugi stirred. Tea gasped, and Solomon tightened his hold on his grandson's hand. Yugi was still for a moment longer, and then stirred again. His eyelids fluttered before opening. He gazed around slowly. "Where...where am I?"

"Yugi!" Solomon exclaimed. Yugi sat up and had been upright for about .1257 seconds before Grandpa grabbed him in a bear hug. "We were so worried about you!" Yugi hugged him back, finally conscious enough to make sense of the situation. Tea felt tears as she saw her friend alive--and for good.

A doctor came in and was shocked to see Yugi awake and getting hugs. "Oh, my...he's awake!" was all she could say. She bustled over to the bed and checked the electronic readouts on all the complicated machines. "Amazing...according to these, nothing has changed in him except the return of his brain activity. I know this is a wonderful moment, but we're going to need you two to step outside for a few moments so I can run a couple of tests on him."

"Of course!" Grandpa said, both his and Tea's faces aglow with happiness. They stepped outside, where Joey, Serenity, Tristan, and Ryou were waiting for an update on Yugi's condition. One look at the two and everyone just knew.

The doctor smiled as cheers erupted outside the room.

* * *

In Yugi's soul room, Yugi and Yami were sharing a big hug as well. "Yugi, I'm so happy you're back," Yami said.

"I'm happy to be back, too," Yugi said.

Yami pulled Yugi back so he could look into the younger boy's face. He wasn't sure where to start. "Yugi...I'm so sorry," he said.

Yugi tilted his head in confusion. "About what?" he asked.

"I'm supposed to protect you. And I did a terrible job. I almost let you be killed, twice." Yami looked down; he couldn't look Yugi in the face anymore. "We almost lost you. _I _almost lost you. I am so sorry."

He was surprised when Yugi hugged him again. "Yami, it's not your fault. And it's only because of you that I survived." He explained about his journey to his subconscious, and added that Yami had saved him inside Nona's little paradise world. "I would never had been able to survive if it weren't for you using too much magic to remove Nona's immobility spell. _You _saved me, Yami, just like you're supposed to do."

Yami was astonished. Then he smiled. "I'm just happy you're all right," he said. _And that I didn't fail completely like I had thought._

"Yami," Yugi said, "you could never fail me. You don't fail unless you don't try, and I know you tried to help me." He pulled back a little so he could look up at Yami. "You're my protector. What's more, you're one of my best friends. You don't have to feel responsible for what happened to me."

Yami smiled as he remembered that Yugi could hear his every thought. He didn't know what to say, so he simply hugged his light again and made a mental promise to not let go for the next six hours.

**END** **CHAPTER

* * *

**

Mena: How kawaii! Yugi's awake and he's going to stay that way!

Toli: And before you raise doubts, Nona and all components of her finishing spell are all gone!

Jesselda: Next time will be the epilogue, and then after that, the Reviewer's Choice Awards.

Masami: Bet you don't wanna miss _that_!

Damion: So, can we have some more chips?

Mena: Yay! Chips! (hugs Damion for no reason)


	21. EPILOGUE

**RESPONSES

* * *

**

**kameeko**

Mena: Yay for happy endings!

Toli: Nope, sorry; we couldn't put the Reviewer's Choice Awards in here. It's too long. Sorry again.

Mena: And I get my dreams from sleeping.

Toli:...(sighs) Anyway, thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**Silver Moon Phoenix**

Mena: EEEK! THREATS! (hides behind Toli)

Toli: Not again. You should've known better, Luna; of course we wouldn't have let Nona kill Yugi! We love him too much! (shakes head) You're gonna get yourself killed, I say.

Mena: Well, thanks for reviewing anyway!

* * *

**Phoenix727**

Toli: (wrinkles nose) Please. Go puke in the bathroom; that's gross!

Mena: Poor Yami, he'll have back pains for a while, methinks.

Toli: It's sad that the story has to end, (sighs) but yeah, at least it wasn't Yaoi. I can read that, but I really don't like ANY romance; I'm just not a romance person.

Mena: Thanks for reviewing, guys!

* * *

**Elizabeth Aiken**

Mena: Ooh, pixy sticks? Where!

Toli: (slaps hand to forehead) None for you!

Mena: Blue hair with silver streaks IS awesome! I'm gonna try it!

Toli: Thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**Millenniumgrl126**

Mena: You liked? Yay!

Toli: Another vote for a sequel! Wow, then fine, sequel it is!

Mena: YAAAAY!

Toli: Quiet! Anyway, hugs all around! Thanks for reviewing and hope you enjoy!

* * *

**MarshmellowDragon**

Toli: Murphy's law sucks. Except for when it happens to someone else; then it's funny.

Mena: The dark side is a bunch of guys who trap you in a duel using the Seal of Orichalcos and if you lose the duel, they take your soul! I think the leader guy, Dartz, brainwashed Mai or something. It was awful.

Toli: Yes, unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. Like all bad things, but nobody cares about the bad things. We hope you enjoy this last part of the story! (sniffs)

* * *

**Erckie (and Kyrie)**

Mena: Awww, we made them cry!

Toli: Don't you just love a touching moment in the middle of chaos? And thanks for reminding us about our subconscious friends. Believe it or not, we forgot about them! (sighs)

Mena: Crazy amnesiac sister! Yay! Party! Pina coladas!

Toli: Which _you_ aren't having! Anyway, thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**sabishii kitsune**

Mena: Yay! You voted! Yay!

Toli: Re-tally time! (re-tallies) Thanks for voting!

Mena: We're sooo happy you've joined us here! Pay special attention to the author's notes-there's something special for you!

* * *

**Dark Mage of Sea**

Mena: (hugs random Yugi plushie) Yay! He's safe! We Yugi-fans are so happy!

Toli: (shrugs and hugs Torru) Yeah, he's safe!

Mena: Thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**Krista123**

Mena: It's okay! Don't cry! We forgive you!

Toli: We're just glad you came back!

Mena: Yay! Hugs! (hugs Krista back) Thanks for reviewing and voting!

* * *

**ShebyTheDogDemoness**

Mena: OOOH! Apple cider and pie! Can I have some?

Toli: You greedy pig!

Mena: I can't help it, I'm hungry!

Toli: Yeah, yeah. Anyway, thanks for voting in the new categories! We appreciate it!

* * *

**SPUW Commander's brother**

Mena: Yes, Nona's dead!

Toli: You're SPUW Commander's brother? Nice job. Thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**dragon shadows**

Mena: Yep! Yugi is back and Nona is gone! What more could they want? Ummm...friendship cookies?

Toli: No, a sequel!

Mena: Yeah! They might want that! Anyway, thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**YamiYugimoto092**

Mena: Nope, doesn't sound corny to us!

Toli: Yeah, after all, fics are fun to read, and who wants to miss the next chapter in a good fic? We're just glad you like this fic enough to watch for reviews every day!

Mena: Oooh, another vote aye for a sequel, sister! We must give the public what it wants!

Toli: Agreed. Thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**Serena the Hikari of Love**

Toli: Hey! Welcome!

Mena: Glad you liked!

Toli: Here's another chapter! Thanks for reviewing!

* * *

**Special Note: **to ShebyTheDogDemoness (Sheby and Mera), kameeko (Kameeko and Kamoray), SPUW Commander (SPUW Commander), Erckie (Erckie and Kyrie) MarshmellowDragon (Sarki) and Loyal fan (Loyal fan), this may seem like a weird question, but we need to know the gender of the people in parentheses by your names. Trust us, it is VERY IMPORTANT!

* * *

Toli: Hello, yet again! 

Mena: Glad you all came back! Guess what! We broke our record for most reviews for a single chappie! 19! Yay!

Toli: We also have another special announcement to make. We reached-and passed-our story-long goal of 200 reviews! Yay! (confetti) Anyway, just as we promised, we have a special gift for the 200th reviewer! Everyone congratulate our 200th reviewer, **sabishii kitsune**!

Everyone: Congratulated.

Toli: Now, say hello to Kitsune, who will receive the prize of joining us in the author's notes!

Kitsune: (suddenly appears) Whoa, cool! Hey, everybody!

Mena: Hi, Kitsune! (hugs Kitsune)

Toli: (sweatdrops) It looks like Mena had too many brownies this morning...sugar-high nut...

Damion: (ticked) Who does this Kitsune think she is?

Masami: (rolls eyes) Let's just get on to the epilogue, here!

Jesselda: They don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

Toli: And the voting booths are now CLOSED, so, no more voting!

Kitsune: And now on to the story!

Mena: I couldn't have said it better myself!

Jesselda: That's because she read from your cue card.

* * *

**EPILOGUE**

**(a week later)**

The plane let its landing gear down as it came into the Domino Airport. When it was safely settled on the ground, the doors opened and passengers filed out and down the stairs, holding carry-on bags and talking to one another. Among them were two people, a guy and a girl, who held hands as they entered the airport.

_"Flight 2694 to Miami, Florida will be leaving in ten minutes," _the intercom said over the noise of the inside of an airport. The guy and the girl retrieved their luggage from checkout, one large bag each, along with the guy's carry-on, and left the airport to find the cab they had called ahead for waiting. They put their luggage in the trunk and climbed into the backseat.

"Where am I taking you two?" the cabbie asked, smiling at them in the rearview mirror.

"Domino Star Apartments," the guy answered, smiling back faintly. Something seemed...amiss in his disturbingly bright silver eyes, but the cabbie dismissed it and drove the cab away.

The girl inched closer to the guy, lowering her voice in case the cabbie was spying. "This is the right city, isn't it?" she asked him.

The guy nodded. "Domino City. We'll find them here."

"But what if...we're too late?"

"We won't be," he assured her, squeezing her hand. The cabbie, oblivious to their conversation, drove them deeper into Domino City.

* * *

Yugi looked around. As far as he could see, white fluffiness surrounded him. "What is this-a giant cotton ball?" he complained. He narrowed his eyes when he got no response. "Some dream," he muttered, sitting down on the ground. 

"Do you always talk to yourself?"

Yugi turned and saw Transparent Yugi behind him. "Hey, what are you doing here?" he exclaimed, smiling as he stood up again.

Transparent Yugi shrugged. "Well, your dreams stem from thoughts and ideas you store in your subconscious, so we have free access," he explained.

"Oh." Yugi raised an eyebrow. "Why does it seem like everything about my subconscious is just stuff that some bored teenagers made up one day?"

"Because enough people haven't learned enough about their subconsciousnesses to think it sounds logical," Transparent Yugi answered easily.

"Hey, where's Yami? Or yours, anyway."

Yugi felt a tap on his shoulder right after the words left his mouth. He turned and saw Solid Yami. "We decided it would be fun to try and mug you," he said. "You ruined the surprise." He was smiling, though, so Yugi was pretty sure he probably didn't mean it.

"Anyway," Transparent Yugi said, "we know that you've been wondering about us, so we decided to pop in and see you. Unfortunately, this is the last time we'll be able to see each other, because you are not supposed to be able to access your subconscious or anyone within it."

"Well, that stinks," Yugi said. "It would've been nice if you could have met my Yami. You guys helped save my life, after all!"

Both subconscious-dwellers smiled. "Yeah, we know you'll never find any friends as good as us," Solid Yami said, earning mock glares from both Yugis, "but you'll get over it."

"I won't forget you," Yugi promised, seeing that his dream was beginning to fade.

"Good idea," Solid Yami put in. "But never say that again. It sounds incredibly hokey."

Yugi glared, this time for real. "You can't have one touching scene, can you?" he asked.

"Nope," Solid Yami agreed.

"Yeah, we better let you go," Transparent Yugi said. "Your alarm clock has been going off for about fifteen minutes."

"It has!" Yugi exclaimed. "Oh no!

"I'll be late for school!" Yugi cried, sitting up in bed. Unfortunately he sat up too vigorously and knocked himself on the floor somehow. "Ow..."

**_Yugi? Is everything all right?_**

_Yeah, I just don't wanna be late for... _Yugi trailed off as he realized he didn't hear his alarm clock. He sat up and checked it. 6:38. It wasn't due to go off for another seven minutes.

Yugi gasped. "He played a trick on me!" he exclaimed.

**_Who?_**

"Argh!"

**_Is that his name?_**

_No. Stop teasing! _Yugi grumbled as he got up and sat down on his bed. Yami appeared next to him, incredibly confused and also amused. "Are you sure everything's all right, Yugi?"

"Yeah, it's okay," Yugi said, letting himself fall back. "I'm gonna try and go back to sleep. Wake me up if the alarm doesn't."

Yami's eye twitched. **_Oh yes, the oh so wonderful noisemaker, _**he thought grimly.

**END STORY

* * *

**

Toli: Thank you, one and all, for joining us and enjoying our story. Just the RCAs left, and then we're done!

Damion: It's over? That means...no more time with Mena-chan! (hugs Mena)

Mena: I'll never forget you, Damie-chan! (hugs Damion back)

Masami: Will you two give it a _rest_ already? Please, for the sake of my sanity!

Jesselda: I second that herald.

Toli: Don't worry, Masami and Damion, you guys'll see us again.

Kitsune: What about _me_? I just got in the author's notes today!

Mena: To make up for that, you can join us in the author's notes of the sequel!

Kitsune: Cool!

Masami/Damion: Sequel!

Jesselda: (sarcastic) Great.

Mena: That's right, folks, there'll be a sequel!

Toli: Yep! But the question is...how many of you will _read _it? We'll probably have the sequel up next month, so look out for it! It'll most likely be labeled "Sequel to HANA (Home And Not Alone)" or something, so look out for it!

Mena:...Sister, you just said that.

Toli: I did? Dammit!

Mena: Don't forget the quiz!

Toli: What? Oyeah!

* * *

Quiz (See how good your memory is! First person to get the most answers correct gets something special which we refuse to mention by name-but it will be cool, we promise!) 

1: Who shoved Yugi into the street to be run over?  
**A:** Joey  
**B:** Tristan  
**C:** Tea  
**D:** Pegasus

2: What did Tea use to try and kill Yugi?  
**A:** A mallet  
**B:** A baseball bat  
**C:** A floor lamp  
**D:** A butcher knife

3: Who called Yugi the day after he was attacked?  
**A:** Joey  
**B:** Tea  
**C:** Serenity  
**D:** Pegasus

4: Who threw up in class?  
**A:** Tea  
**B:** Yugi  
**C:** Bakura  
**D:** Pegasus

5: Who told Yugi's friends that Yugi was dead?  
**A:** Yami  
**B:** Nona  
**C:** Grandpa  
**D:** Pegasus

6: What were the names of Nona's two friends?  
**A: **Seth and Laverne  
**B: **Shara and Liose  
**C: **Seif and Lavell  
**D: **Pegasus and Gozaburo Kaiba

Toli: The winner will be announced next time after the Reviewer's Choice Awards and by then we'll probably tell them what their prize is. And next time, we'll have the Reviewer's Choice Awards coming up, so stick around a little longer! Ciao!


	22. RCA Awards pt1

**

* * *

Brochure  
Title:** The Reviewer's Choice Awards!  
**Premise:** A rather lengthy two-shot awarding the characters of Yu-Gi-Oh (AKA the stars) the awards for winning the categories YOU voted on!  
**Summary:** The story is over, but the Reviewer's Choice Awards are here! Come watch your (un)favorite characters win awards in a variety of categories as the Talshar twins attempt to keep the insanity and destruction down to a minimum. Minimal bashing.  
**Genre:** Humor and Suspense, no doubt! 

**Table Of Events  
**The Award Ceremony  
The Quiz Bits  
The Credits  
The Sequel Preview

**Hosted by:** Mena and Toli Talshar  
**Lighting and Camerawork by:** Mani Talshar and Izzy Keyein (cousin, 8)  
**Closed Captioning provided by:** Mom Talshar  
**Guest Appearance Key: (**We did some extensive researching ((AKA we looked at people's URLs)) to find out people's names. Anybody whose name we couldn't find gets initials or a nickname. Hope we don't make anyone out of character! Or mess up genders-that's a bad one. And sorry if you aren't on the guest list. We only added the people who voted)  
Masami/Damion** -Masami Mistress Of Fire  
**Erckie/Kyrie** -Erckie  
**Ines/Torru** -Dark mage of sea  
**MG/Killer** -Millenniumgrl126  
**Jessica **-dragon shadows  
**Marshmellow/Sarki** -MarshmellowDragon  
**Sarah** -Scarab Dynasty  
**Elizabeth/Ashley** -Elizabeth Aiken  
**Krista** -Krista123  
**Phoenix/Shadow Phoenix** -Linkin Phoenix  
**Silver/Luna** -Silver Moon Phoenix  
**Kameeko/Kamoray** -kameeko  
**Julia** -dontmesswithYami  
**Sheby/Mera/Sinya **-ShebyTheDogDemoness  
**Commander** -SPUW Commander  
**Kitsune** -sabishii kitsune  
**Angel** -Angel In The Mirror **

**Warning:** OOCness from some of the characters!

**End of Brochure**

**

* * *

**There was a knock on the door. "Um, sister, it's that time," Mena's voice said on the other side of the dressing room door. 

"Mom decided to disown us again?" Toli questioned, straightening her tie.

"Um, no. The _other_ time," Mena said. "The Reviewer's Choice Awards is here and the reviewers are all gathered in the auditorium. Oh yeah, and the stars are too. We gotta go before they decide to riot!"

Toli nodded at her reflection in the mirror. "Okay, just a sec," she said, brushing one side of her chin-length ebony-colored hair behind one ear. She stepped out of her dressing room to find Mena waiting outside. Mena was wearing a sleeveless, sequined blue evening gown, and her hair was pulled back with a blue barrette. Toli, ever the trend breaker, had on a dark blue denim jacket over a red sequined evening gown, and a red tie around her neck.

"Toli, why must you do this?" Mena wanted to know, rolling her eyes. "Can you ever just dress like a normal human being for once?"

"Why would I wanna do something as cliché as that?" Toli asked.

"Come on, guys! It's time to start the show!" Mani urged from some random place.

The two twins nodded at each other and trooped onstage together to begin the show.

There were cheers from the two overhanging balconies, where all of the reviewersone for voters and one for regular reviewershad happily gathered to watch the show. Some had even bothered to tie up friends and drag them in as well. On the floor where the regular chairs were, the stars of the show sat with their respective agents. About twenty seats around Seto and Mokuba were taken up by agents and excessively bulky bodyguards. The need for the bodyguards became clear when a group of Seto fangirls who had gotten together all unanimously blew kisses at their stalkee.

The two onstage went up to the two waiting microphones. Toli took hers right off the stand and went to the edge of the stage. "Ladies and gentleman, disgruntled spirits and androids, yamis and hikaris and those here against your will, welcome to the very first Reviewer's Choice Awards!"

There were cheers and applause from the reviewers, and applause from the stars.

Mena had come up beside her sister. "To reward you all for being so kind and generous with your magnanimous-" she paused as the crowd "ooh"ed at her use of a big word "-reviews, we're bringing you an award show like no other! You have all had a chance to vote for your favorite nominees in a series of categories we picked out, and now we're going to see who gets to win a lovely Revo!" She held up what looked like a little golden man typing away on a little golden laptop in his lap. More cheers.

"Why's it called a Revo?" Toli asked Mena.

Mena shrugged. "It sounded good," she whispered back. Then, back into her microphone, she said, "Now, it's time to begin the show and present our first award!"

Cheers and applause.

"As you all know, no story or show is worth watching...or reading...unless there's a hero-ish person to play the main character. So, our first award of the night is for Most Heroic Character!" Mena said. "And here are the nominees!

"First off, Yugi!"

There were cheers, and several fangirls screamed in delight as a giant picture of Yugi in the audience was plastered up on the giant screen we happened to forget mentioning. He was sitting between Yami and Grandpa and looked cutely embarrassed at the sudden attention.

Mena accidentally dropped the piece of paper she was holding. She picked it up again. "Okay, the next nominee is...Yami!"

More cheers and delighted fangirl screams as the camera swiveled to look at Yami. The fact that he was in black leather instead of a suit or something made the fangirls scream even more. His face was expressionless, but the fact that his eye was twitching meant the screams were getting to him.

"All right, the last nominee is...Joey!"

The same reaction from the crowd and the Joey fangirls as the camera swiveled around a few times before finding Joey. He was sitting between Mai and Serenity, looking for all the world like a hungry puppy. Seto's smirk was almost audible.

"Okay, okay, settle down, people," Mena said. "I still have to announce the winner!" The noise suddenly stopped, like someone had flipped a switch, as the crowd waited for the important announcement. You could hear a pin drop, and Bakura actually dropped a sewing pin on the dark red carpet, to see if you could hear it. It landed with a loud clang and rolled away.

Mena opened the envelope. "And the winner of the Most Heroic Character is...dotdotdot..."

Silence, as the audience held its breath.

"Yugi!"

The reviewers erupted into cheers as the spotlight we also forgot to mention shone down on Yugi. He stood up, wearing a black shirt and pants and his blue jacket, and made his way out to the aisle to get to the stage. Ashley, Silver, and Kitsune all threw white roses down on him.

"Go, Yugi!" Ines cheered from the balcony. "I voted for you!" Ignoring Torru's attempts to quiet her, she happily pumped a fist as he made his way to the waiting microphone. Toli took advantage of the opportunity and gave him a giant hug (as several jealous fangirls looked on) and then gave him his Revo.

Yugi looked up at the microphone. Mena had to lower it. He still couldn't reach, so she lowered it again. Finally, in exasperation, she just yanked the microphone off the stand and handed it to him.

"Um, first I'd like to thank...uh, well, I don't know. I didn't exactly plan a speech," Yugi admitted sheepishly. "Well, then I'd like to thank my grandfather for raising me, and I'd like to thank my friends for hanging out with me, I'd like to thank my yami for protecting me and hanging out with me and filling up all the empty space in my mind, and I'd like to thank the Talshar twins for organizing this event, and...oh! And I'd like to thank all the reviewers who voted for me!" Yugi flashed a grateful smile at the balconies, and several fangirls fainted while others screamed or started jumping up and down or blew kisses.

After that, Yugi left the stage with his award, as the reviewers cheered and the stars applauded. The spotlight wandered aimlessly over random parts of the crowd before centering on Toli.

"Well, as you may know, it's incredibly hard for a hero to be heroic if there's no villain to be villainous," Toli said. "So, our next award is for the Most Villainous Character!"

Cheers and applause, whistles and catcalls, screams of being murdered and laughter from knock-knocks. All response to Toli's statement.

"Here are the nominees for this category," Toli said, looking down at a piece of paper. "First, everyone's favorite CEO, Seto!"

There were according cheers and screams as the camera focused on Seto. He was sitting between Mokuba and three bodyguards (all in one seat...?) and he glared into the camera. A bunch of fangirls got together and started chanting "_SETO_! _SETO_! _SETO_!" while swaying back and forth. They almost knocked Elizabeth off the balcony, but Ashley and Luna grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her back up.

"Our next nominee is..." Toli began, looking back down at the piece of paper, "that evil thief you love to hate, Bakura!"

The usual response. The camera found Bakura in the audience, sitting between Ryou and Marik, caught in the act of trying to light a firecracker that he could shove under Marik's seat. He tossed the unlit firecracker and smiled innocently at the camera.

"And the next nominee," Toli said, "is our Funny Bunny-loving villain, Pegasus!"

There were cheers and applause but not as many screams. The camera found Pegasus, in an impressive and expensive-looking tuxedo, sitting between two Funny Bunny plushies. Except for the plushies, he looked like he actually thought the evening was a serious affair.

Yeah right.

"And our last nominee," Toli said, "is that crazy Rod-wielding maniac-"

"Hey!" Marik shouted from the audience.

"Oh, wait your turn!" Mena shouted back.

"You guys mind?" Toli demanded. Mena and Marik shut up. "Okay. Like I was saying, or last nominee is Marik!"

The usual screams and cheers and applause followed her announcement. The camera, which happened to be flying over people's heads with two little angel wings, focused on Marik, who was sitting between Bakura and Ishizu, the two Ishtars wearing formal Egyptian clothes. He was pouting angrily about Toli's introduction of him.

Toli waited for the noise to die down before opening the envelope. "All right, and now the moment you've been waiting for! The winner of the Most Villainous Character award is..."

The audience held their breath. Then Julia let it out in a gasp and passed out.

Toli read the envelope and looked up with a smile. "Marik!"

There were cheers and applause as the camera turned to see Marik with the pout still on his face. Ishizu poked him in the side and whispered something in his ear, and his pout turned to a look of confusion. She whispered in his ear again, and Marik suddenly sprang upright and made his way out to the aisle. Krista threw a purple rose on his head and blew kisses at him. He went up to the stage amid cheers and applause and screams and cries and someone blowing their nose quite loudly. Mena handed him his Revo and gave him a bone-crushing hug.

"Uh...well...I'd like to thank me, because I'm great," Marik said. "And...well, that's about it. I don't care enough about anyone else to thank them."

"Marik!" Ishizu exclaimed, standing up in the audience.

"Oh yeah. I thank my sister...my brother...um, the mailman...can I stop now?" he whined to Ishizu.

Ishizu sighed and nodded, and Marik, relieved, left the stage with his Revo and Krista's purple rose tucked under an arm.

"Okay, commercial time!" Mena announced. The crowd groaned. "Oh, shut up and take it!" Toli snapped. She and Mena left the stage together and left the crowd to mingle as the screen rolled with sponsors' ads, most of them obviously homemade. The crowd immediately mingled.

"I'm so glad Yugi won the Most Heroic Character award," Erckie said to Kyrie and the Aiken twins. All four had Vanilla Cokes in their hands.

"I would have liked it better if Joey had won," Elizabeth admitted.

Torru passed by with Ines but did a double take. "Hey, is that Coke? Can I have some?"

They let him have one. "What are the other awards?" Ashley asked no one in particular.

Elizabeth pulled out a brochure. "They don't say. They just tell you when all the events will take place."

"Hey, you guys," Sarah said, coming over to their group, "me and some of the other fangirls are planning to kidnap Yugi after the award show. Any of you wanna help out?"

While the Vanilla Coke group was being hired to break the law, Ines and Torru were talking to Damion and Masami.

"So, you're Mena's boyfriend, right?" Torru asked Damion.

Damion turned a bright red. "Yeah what's it to you?" he asked defensively.

"So you know Toli, don't you?"

Damion shrugged. "Yeah, some. She's a nice girl."

Torru nodded. "Has she, uh, said anything about me?"

Ines and Masami rolled their eyes. "Sometimes boys are such idiots," Ines said.

"I agree," Masami put in.

Meanwhile, Julia had revived and was now trying to sneak her way over to Yami. She found him in the middle of a conversation with Yugi, who was holding his Revo in his lap. Grandpa had left to take care of business. Julia saw it as the perfect opportunity and took the old man's seat.

"Hi, guys!" she said cheerfully.

Yami and Yugi turned to her. "Uh, hi," Yugi said.

"Can we help you with something?" Yami asked, trying to be polite.

Julia shook her head. "Oh, no, not really."

Just then Mena and Toli came back onstage. "Okay, people, we're back!" Mena said into her microphone. People started heading back to their seats. Grandpa came back from the little boys' room and found Julia in his seat. Not wanting security to toss her out, he took a seat on the floor beside Julia's new aisle seat.

"Sorry about the commercial," Toli said, "but we wanted everyone to get to make an appearance in the story! And just so you know, we'll be having three more commercials. Anyway, let's keep going!

"Well, we all know that a great show has to have a hero and a villain. But there's something else a great show needs," Toli said as the wandering spotlight finally figured out where she was. "And that's somebody to get on your nerves!"

There were laughs and a shout of "Ain't _that_ the truth!" from Marshmellow, who was holding Sarki in place by the ear.

"Well it's time to appreciate those annoying people in all their glory," Toli went on, "so our next award is for the Most Annoying Character!"

There was the usual applause, cheers, and snorts.

Toli lifted the sheet of paper with the nominees on it. "And our first nominee is, our one and only Friendship Freak, Tea!"

There were cheers and applause but no screams, for fanboys don't scream. The camera found Tea, who was sitting between Yami and Tristan, wearing an off-white evening gown. She smiled and waved at the camera.

"And the next nominee," Toli went on, "is that guy who sort of blends into the wall. Tristan!"

Applause, but no cheers or screams. The camera turned to look at Tristan, who hunched down in his seat and started grumbling about something.

"The next nominee," Toli continued, "is that mutt everybody knows, Joey!"

"Hey! I ain't a mutt!" Joey cried over the applause, cheers, and screams from Joey fangirls. He was standing up.

"Oh, yes you are, Wheeler," Seto suddenly said, standing up in the sea of bodyguards. "Don't act so appalled because your true nature has been exposed."

"Grrr, _KAI-BAAA_!" Joey roared, shaking an angry fist. "Yer gonna get it someday, believe you me!"

Toli sighed. "Do you guys mind if I continue or what?" she demanded. Seto and Joey sat down. "Thank you. Anywhatever, our next nominee is that same tomb robber we mentioned before, Bakura!"

The same cheers, applause, and screams from Bakura fangirls from last time started up again. The camera looked at Bakura, who was about to plant something small and black in Marik's hair. He quickly tossed it over his shoulder and smiled innocently at the camera again.

"And our final nominee," Toli said, "is the little Kaiba, Mokuba!"

There were cheers and applause as the camera focused on Mokuba, wearing a tuxunlike his brotherand sitting between Seto and four bodyguards (all in one seat, I suppose...). He looked a little bored, and Seto looked angry that his brother had been nominated for this specific award.

"And the winner of the Most Annoying Character award is..." Toli opened the envelope and looked at the card. Everyone held their breath in suspense. Julia, having learned her lesson, simply breathed quietly.

Toli looked up and smiled. "Tea!"

There were cheers and applause, despite the fact that this was in most terms a negative award. Tea stood up as the camera and spotlight finally figured out where she was. She stepped out into the aisle and headed for the stage. Phoenix threw a pink rose down on her.

"Where are all these roses coming from?" Sheby wondered aloud.

Mera turned to look at Sinya. "That is _not_ your cue to wander around," she said sternly.

Sinya gave her a "oh, I wouldn't do _that_" look. Meanwhile, Tea walked up to the stage, where Mena gave her a hug and handed her the shiny gold Revo. Then Tea stepped up to the microphone and waited for the noise to cease.

"This is really awesome," Tea said, "and even though this would be considered a negative award in most respects, I still appreciate it. I actually do have a short speech planned-"

The audience groaned. Tea rolled her eyes. "It isn't a friendship speech!" she snapped.

The groaning stopped. Tea sighed and pushed her hair out of her face. "So, like I was saying, I'd like to thank my friends for supporting me-" she glared as about half the audience cringed when the word "friends" came from her mouth. The other half glared at the cringing half. "And I'd like to thank everyone else who has made a difference in my life. I'd also like to thank the reviewers who voted for me!" She bowed and left the stage amid applause. The spotlight and camera, both flying over the audience, bumped into each other once. Mani and Izzy, who were controlling the light and camera from the rafters, started pushing buttons on their remote controllers.

Toli took the mike again. "As you can obviously see from my original fashion sense-" she paused to quickly display her outfit again, earning light applause "-I like to look good. Of course, who doesn't want to dress their best? But dressing your best and putting together an outfit that people will agree looks hot are unfortunately two different things. Well now we're here to shine the...er, erratically moving spotlight on those who can do both, so our next award is for the Best Dressed!"

As usual, applause, cheers, screams, gurgles, heavy breathing, and other such noises of appreciation.

Toli smiled at the audience. "Our first nominee is, once again, everyone's favorite trenchcoat-wearing CEO, Seto Kaiba!"

Applause and cheers and screams from the Seto fangirls. Someone decided it would be fun to drool on the red carpet from the balcony. The camera turned to Seto, dressed in black and a gravity-defying trenchcoat, which was partially floating over his seat. He had his usual cold scowl in place.

"Our next nominee is a guy who can still look good, even with his hikari's limited wardrobe, none other than Yami!"

The appropriate cheers, applause, and screams of joy were heard as the camera focused on Yami again, still in his black leather (like he would have taken it off or something?). He raised an eyebrow slowly, and then casually lifted a hand to wave at the camera. Two seats away from him, Julia was giggling at the thought of being so close to Yami.

"Our next nominee," Toli went on when the noise finally died down, "is, once again, Funny Bunny Freak, the guy never caught without a suit on, Pegasus!"

Applause but no screams. The camera turned to look at Pegasus briefly, and then it decided to look elsewhere like it was bored.

"Our next nominee," Toli said, "is everyone's favorite miniskirt-wearing female duelist, Mai!"

Applause and cheers and a happy yell from Marshmellow as the camera righted itself and focused on Mai, who was sitting between Joey and Duke. She was wearing a minidress and knee-length high-heel boots, and some guys started cheering louder.

"And finally," Toli said, "our last nominee is, everyone's favorite dice freak who can't keep his hands off his own hair, Duke!"

The normal applause, cheers, and screams from Duke fangirls. The camera focused on Duke, who was sitting between Mai and the aisle, dressed in red and black, playing with his hair, as usual.

"And the winner," Toli said, opening the envelope, "of the Best Dressed Category is..."

Everyone held their breath. Julia, once again, breathed quietly, and this time Angel passed out from holding in air for too long.

Toli smiled. "My choice exactly. Mai!"

The audience burst into applause and cheers as the camera and spotlight found Mai without incident. She stood up and went out into the aisle. Marshmellow roped Sarki and Commander into helping her throw green roses on Mai's head as she went onstage. Mena gave her a high-five and her Revo, and she stepped up to the microphone.

"Wow, this is pretty awesome," Mai said, smiling. "Well, let's see. I'd like to thank Joey for escorting me to the Reviewer's Choice Awards, and I'd like to thank my professional consultant for helping me put all my outfits together, and I'd like to thank Maybelline for making the makeup I use, and I'd like to thank the Talshar twins for putting this together, and I'd like to thank all the reviewers who said my clothes are the best! This one's for you!" She held up the Revo as the cheers and applause started up. Then she went back to her seat.

"Okay, people, commercial time again!" Mena said.

This time no one groaned because Toli was giving them a glare. "Mingle and enjoy each other's company!" The twins left the stage, and the audience started mingling.

Jessica made her way to the bathroom. When she came back, things had changed a little among the reviewers. Erckie and Kyrie had somehow cleared away several chairs and set up a Vanilla Coke stand and was selling Vanilla Cokes to people for money and other such valuable things and ideas. Shadow Phoenix, Killer, Luna, Mera and Sinya had set up a black tent in one corner of the balcony and had a sign which read "Meeting For Those Here Against Their Will". Sarki was heading over to them. Ines and Masami had left Torru and Damion, who were busy talking about the Talshar twins, and had collected up Sarah, Kitsune, Sheby, Silver, and Phoenix and were now happily discussing how they planned to kidnap Yugi after the show. Julia was still in Solomon's seat and was talking to Yami and Yugi about where they bought their clothes. Suddenly Chemo and Croquet, who had been hired by Mom Talshar to be security guards, showed up and Julia had to go back to her seat in the voters' balcony. Before leaving, she gave Yami and Yugi a big hug each.

"Psst, Jessica," a low voice said from behind a random curtain. Jessica turned and saw Mena's yami, Jesselda, hiding behind the curtain, wearing a black dress and cape. She motioned Jessica over. "Here, take this," she said, handing Jessica the Millennium Plate. "Do _not_ let Mena have it until this is over." That done, she walked off to join the "Those Here Against Their Will" meeting.

"...Um...okay..." Jessica said uncertainly.

Meanwhile, at Erckie and Kyrie's Vanilla Coke stand, the two had started selling virgin pina coladas and roses of every color. It turns out that Mani had had all the roses and had handed them out to people who wanted to throw them. Now she had given them all to Erckie and Kyrie to sell.

"How much is two Vanilla Cokes?" Kameeko asked.

"How much do you have?" Kyrie asked.

"Um...six dollars and seven cents...and two and a half dinner mints," Kamoray answered, holding out their offering.

"That'll work." Erckie took the money and mints and handed them two Vanilla Cokes. Kameeko and Kamoray left, to be replaced by Shadow Phoenix who bought a Vanilla Coke for himself and one for Phoenix.

Silver came up while Shadow Phoenix was doing so and leaned over the counter, eyeing the incredibly short list of things they sold. "Do you guys sell pancakes?"

"Pancakes?" Erckie glanced at Kyrie, who shrugged. "I don't think we have any. But we'll see about it."

"You guys, I don't think security will just let you kidnap Yugi after the show," Krista said, walking by the Yugi-fans group.

Julia appeared out of nowhere. "That's right!" she agreed. "That security is fierce. Hope you have stun guns!"

"Toli's little sister Mani sold us all of Toli's old frying pans," Ines explained. "We can use those."

There was silence as the group contemplated Toli's sanity.

"Hey, I think the show's back," Kitsune said, pointing to the big screen which had stopped showing poorly made commercials.

The voters all grabbed seats, most of which had been knocked down when Erckie and Kyrie had been looking for a place to set up their stand, and started sitting down. Most sat near Erckie and Kyrie's stand so they could buy drinks without having to walk a long distance. The "Here Against Our Will" and "Kidnap Yugi" meetings quieted down as the twins showed up onstage again. The flying spotlight slammed into the railing of the voters' balcony. Izzy, who was controlling the flying spotlight, got a nice clock on the head from Mani.

Mena grabbed her microphone and smoothed her hair. "Okay, we're back now!" she said. "It's time for the next award!"

The usual noises of appreciation occurred.

"Well, we've covered the fact that every show needs a hero, a villain, someone to annoy you, and a good dresser. But there's another thing that a good show needs," Mena said. "And that," she stated importantly with one finger in the air, "is the most important guy to the plot!"

All the girls agreed. The guys simply waited to hear more.

"So," Mena said, lowering her finger, "our next award is for the Most Important Male!"

This time everyone contained the strange noises and simply cheered and applauded.

Mena opened the paper containing the list of nominees. "All right," she said, "our first nominee is, well, duh, this guy is obvious, I mean, the main man, or highschooler, Yugi!"

Cheers and applause and screams. The camera found Yugi, but the spotlight crashed. Mani whacked Izzy on the head with frying pan as punishment. Sarah was accidentally shoved over the railing of the balcony and fell on top of Chemo, who was making rounds. She got up and dusted herself off, unhurt, but Chemo didn't move.

A sweatdrop appeared on the back of Toli's head. _Is it me, or are things getting weirder by the minute? _she thought.

Mena, oblivious to the crashed camera, and the fact that her little sister was physically abusing her cousin, and the giant sweatdrop weighing down her twin's head, and the fact that Sarah had possibly killed one of the guards by falling on him, made a motion for the noise to quiet. "Our next nominee," she said when the noise had quieted, "is the resident 5,000-year-old pharaoh, the guy who everyone wishes was in their head, Yami!"

As usual, screams and cheers and applause. Izzy, ignoring the giant lump on his head, righted the spotlight as the camera focused on Yami again. This time Jessica was shoved off the balcony, and she fell on Croquet. She was unharmed as well, but Croquet didn't move either.

"Who keeps pushing people off the balcony?" Silver wondered.

"Hey Silver," said Ines, who was sitting beside her, "where's Luna?"

Silver glanced around and saw that Luna was gone. "Uh oh..."

"Our next nominee," Mena said, "is the guy with the gravity-defying trenchcoats, Mr. CEO-I-can't-get-over-a-grudge himself, Seto!"

There was applause, but no cheers and screams as people's voices were starting to get worn out. Many bottles of Vanilla Coke were sold in the next six seconds to remedy this. Whoever was attempting to murder knocked Kitsune off of the balcony this time, and she fell on both Sarah and Jessica. Silver left her seat to go find Luna. Mera, in the meantime, noticed that Sinya was missing as well. Oh yeah, and the camera turned to look at Seto, who scowled.

"Big brother," Mokuba said, nudging Seto in the ribs, "can't you smile at least a little for the cameras?"

"Why would I want to do something as pointless as that?" was the response.

Mena, who hadn't noticed a single speck of the threatening pandemonium, simply looked down at the nominee sheet. "And our last nominee," she said, "is everyone's favorite dumb blond, the guy who makes you laugh even in the middle of a crisis-who wrote this? Anyway, Joey!"

There was applause, and cheers and screams from the revitalized throats as the camera found Joey again. Everyone at the edge of the balcony wrapped their legs around their chairs as they applauded to keep from being knocked over the edge, but Ashley was a beat too late and she got knocked off. On the floor, Sarah, Jessica, and Kitsune were prepared and were nice enough to catch her.

"And the winner," Mena said, opening the envelope containing the name of the most voted for, "of the Most Important Male category is..."

Everyone waited. Having learned from Julia's and Angel's mistakes, everyone just kept their breathing quiet.

Mena looked at the paper and smiled. She showed it to Toli, who grinned happily. Then Mena returned to the microphone. "Yami!"

Cheers and applause and happy screams of delight as the camera and spotlight focused on Yami. Yami leaned over and said something to Yugi. Yugi said something back while pointing at the stage, and Yami stood up and got out into the aisle. Ines, Julia, and Kitsune, who was still on the floor, all threw silver roses on Yami, and Julia blew him a kiss. Yami made his way up onstage, where Toli gave him a big hug and a kiss on the cheek (as we all know, Toli is a major Yami fan, winkwink) and handed him his Revo. Mena then handed him a microphone.

The noise died down. Yami approached the edge of the stage. "Well, I don't exactly know what to say," he admitted. "I've only seen things like this on television, and I have never been to one, much less won anything. But I think I get the idea of what you're supposed to do up here, so here goes. First of all, I'd like to thank Yugi for solving the Puzzle in the first place and releasing me, and being my closest friend."

All the girls in the audience went "Awww!"

"And I'd like to thank all my friends for being my friends, and I'd like to thank all of the nice people who voted for me."

"That was me!" Julia yelled.

Yami bowed and walked offstage amid cheers and applause. When the noise died down, Toli had taken over the microphone.

"Okay, all right, so we all know a good show needs a incredibly important guy," Toli said. "but, let's not forget, where there's a guy, there's got to be a girl to kick him into shape."

Masami, Mera, and Ines agreed vehemently with this.

"And where there's an important guy, there's an important girl," Toli went on. "So our next award is for the Most Important Female!"

Cheers and applause, laughs and screams, loud denyings of plans for world dominationthe usual noises.

"Our first nominee," Toli said, "is everyone's favorite female duelist, the one with all the blond hair, Mai!"

Cheers and applause. The camera found Mai, who had her Revo from the Best Dressed category in her lap. She smiled and flashed a peace sign at the camera.

"Our next nominee," Toli went on, "is that lovely woman from Egypt, the one who used to have the Millennium Necklace, you know, the one who foresaw all that stuff. Ishizu!"

Cheers and applause. The camera bounced off of Masami's head and then found Ishizu. She was sitting between her brother and the aisle. She smiled at the camera. In the wings, Mani started banging on the controller in her hands. "This thing is malforktioning!" she grumbled.

"The next nominee," Toli continued, "is once again, our Friend Freak, the one that likes dancing, Tea!"

Once again, cheers and applause. The camera found Tea, who was holding her Revo. She waved happily at the camera.

"And last, but definitely not least," Toli said, "is Joey Wheeler's little sister, Serenity!"

Applause and cheers (ha! It was cheers and applause last time!) as the camera turned and found Serenity. She was sitting between Joey and Tristan. She looked embarrassed at the sudden attention, but managed a smile.

Toli waited until the noise had died down before opening the envelope. "And now," she said, "the winner of the Most Important Female Award is..."

Everyone leaned forward in their seats, causing a synchronized squeaking of chairs.

Toli's eyebrows raised as she looked at the envelope. "Something wrong?" Mena whispered. She glanced at the envelope. "Is that all?"

With a shrug, Toli turned back to her microphone. "The winner is Tea!"

Applause and cheers. Someone accidentally dropped a can of Vanilla Coke off the balcony, and it spilled onto the carpet below. Tea got out of her seat, leaving her Revo for Most Annoying Character in it, and went up to the stage. Mena gave her a hug and handed her the new award.

"Wow, two awards in one night!" Tea said into the microphone when the noise had died down. "This is a real honor. I appreciate it so much. I'll keep it short this time, and just say thanks to everybody!" The audience applauded as she made her way back to her seat, now holding two Revos.

Mena grabbed up her microphone. "Well, it's that time again. Commercial break!" She and Toli left the stage and went backstage as everybody started mingling again.

Down on the floor where the stars were sitting, Sarah, Jessica, Ashley, and Kitsune were considering how to get back up to the voters' balcony. "Maybe we could make a human ladder or something," Kitsune suggested.

"How would that work?" Sarah asked. "We're not tall enough, and even if we were, only one of us could get back on the balcony!"

"Does anyone know who even knocked us off?" Jessica asked.

"I have no idea," Ashley said. "What about you Kitsune? Sarah?"

They shook their heads. They all looked up at the voters' balcony and sighed.

Meanwhile, up on the balcony, things were getting just a _little_ weirder. Erckie and Kyrie were now selling pancakes, Cheez-It crackers, and some of Toli's more inventive "prezzies". Their best selling item was still Vanilla Coke, though. Jesselda had joined the "Here Against Our Will" meeting and was telling them about the secret escape path up through the rafters. The "Kidnap Yugi" meeting was kind of falling apart, since three of their members were no longer present on the balcony.

"What are you doing?" Silver asked.

"Looking for Sinya," Mera answered her. "That delinquent disappeared during the Most Important Male award."

"So did Luna," Silver said, her chin in her hand as she thought. "Why don't we team up and look for them together?"

Mera shrugged.

"Sarki!" Marshmellow yelled across the balcony. "SARKI!"

"WHAT?" Sarki yelled back.

"YOU WANT A VANILLA COKE?"

"OKAY!"

Marshmellow turned back to the counter. "Okay. One more Vanilla Coke, please," she said to Kyrie.

"MARSHMELLOW!"

"WHAT?"

"EVERYONE ELSE IN THE MEETING WANTS ONE TOO!"

"OKAY!" Marshmellow turned back to Kyrie. "Scratch that. Make it seven more Vanilla Cokes."

"You got fifty-seven dollars and twenty-nine cents and two different color buttons?" Kyrie asked incredulously.

Marshmellow handed the required over and got her Cokes. She tossed them over to the HAOW (Here Against Our Will) meeting and hit everyone on the head except Sarki, who caught her soda.

"I hate her," Shadow Phoenix commented, wincing at the pain of a brand new lump on his head.

"She's as bad as Mena," Jesselda chimed in.

Torru and Damion were still talking about the twins. Masami and Ines had come over to ask them if they wanted Vanilla Cokes, and were patiently waiting for a break in the conversation.

"Do you guys want a Coke or what?" Ines demanded.

"Just a sec," Torru told her. "So, do you know what Toli's favorite color is?"

Damion rolled his eyes. "Dude, I'm obsessed with _Mena_, not Toli. I wouldn't know, okay?"

"Guys! Do you want some Vanilla Coke?" Masami asked frustratedly.

"Did Mena ever tell you what type of guy Toli likes?" Torru asked.

"Nope," Damion answered.

Ines and Masami gave each other frustrated looks. Moments later, both Torru and Damion had been shoved over the edge of the balcony. The four girls already there didn't bother to catch them. They fell on Chemo and Croquet, who were just recovering, knocking them out again.

Up in the rafters, Mani and Izzy were sitting together, dangling their legs over the edge. "Did you happen to notice how berserk things are going?" Izzy asked Mani.

Mani nodded. "That's what happens whenever my big sisters plan an event and invite anyone outside the family."

"Ohhh, so _that_ explains the whole trip-to-France-plane-fiasco thing last summer," Izzy realized.

_"Hey Mani," _Mena said into the walkie-talkie, _"we need you onstage!"_

"Okay," Mani said into hers. She stood up and called someone on her cellphone. "I'm getting somebody to work the camera while I'm gone," she explained to Izzy. Moments later, MG, who had absolutely nothing better to do and didn't know how Mani had gotten her cellphone number, showed up and took over the camera's remote control as Mani ran off to make it to backstage.

_"What are you doing?" _Killer demanded into the walkie-talkie that had magically appeared on MG's hip.

"I'm managing the camera," MG answered.

There was a sigh. _"Well, you better get back down here and give me the money for a Coke soon," _Killer said.

"Yeah, yeah," MG said, pushing buttons on the controller.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**

* * *

**

Mena: What? Why did you cut it off there?

Toli: Because my hands hurt! Don't yours?

Mena: Well, now that you mention it...

Toli: Sorry, folks, but we have to cut the awards show in half in order not to blow you over or overwork ourselves. But the second half will be up soon, you can count on that! So you don't wanna miss it! Review and tell us what you think so far!

(All review responses will be in the second half)


End file.
